SharePoint Online PowerShell Management

About SharePoint Online PowerShell

SharePoint Online Management Shell provides comprehensive PowerShell-based administrative capabilities for bulk operations, automation, and advanced configuration tasks. It's the most powerful tool for SharePoint Online administration, offering both traditional SPO cmdlets and modern PnP PowerShell modules. The tool supports modern authentication with MFA and provides extensive automation capabilities for enterprise environments. PowerShell is essential for tasks that cannot be performed through the web interface.

PowerShell Module Options

Traditional SPO Module

Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell

Official Microsoft module
Tenant-level administration
Site collection management
User and group operations
Compliance and security settings

Modern PnP Module

PnP.PowerShell

Community-driven, Microsoft-supported
Site-level and content operations
Modern authentication features
Cross-platform compatibility
Extensive functionality and flexibility

Installation and Setup

Prerequisites

PowerShell 5.1+: Windows PowerShell 5.1 or PowerShell 7+
Execution Policy: Set to RemoteSigned or Unrestricted for module installation
Administrative Permissions: Global Admin or SharePoint Admin roles
Modern Authentication: Azure AD account with MFA support

Module Installation

# Step 1: Set Execution Policy (Run as Administrator)
Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser

# Step 2: Install SharePoint Online PowerShell Module
Install-Module -Name Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell -Force -AllowClobber

# Step 3: Install PnP PowerShell (Recommended for modern scenarios)
Install-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -Force -AllowClobber

# Step 4: Verify Installation
Get-Module -Name Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell -ListAvailable
Get-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -ListAvailable

# Step 5: Update Modules (run periodically)
Update-Module -Name Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell
Update-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell
            

Connection Methods

SPO Admin Center Connection

# Traditional SPO Connection (Tenant Administration)
Connect-SPOService -Url https://[tenant]-admin.sharepoint.com

# With Modern Authentication (supports MFA)
Connect-SPOService -Url https://[tenant]-admin.sharepoint.com -ModernAuth $true

# Verify Connection
Get-SPOTenant
            

PnP PowerShell Connection

# Modern PnP Connection (Interactive with MFA support)
Connect-PnPOnline -Url https://[tenant].sharepoint.com/sites/[sitename] -Interactive

# Connection with specific credentials
Connect-PnPOnline -Url https://[tenant].sharepoint.com/sites/[sitename] -Credentials (Get-Credential)

# Admin Center Connection with PnP
Connect-PnPOnline -Url https://[tenant]-admin.sharepoint.com -Interactive

# Verify Connection
Get-PnPWeb
Get-PnPContext
            

Essential Administrative Tasks

Site Collection Management

# Get Site Collection Information
Get-SPOSite -Identity https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite
Get-SPOSite -Limit All | Where-Object {$_.Title -like "*Finance*"}

# Create New Site Collection
New-SPOSite -Url https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/newproject `
           -Owner admin@contoso.com `
           -StorageQuota 1000 `
           -Template "STS#3" `
           -Title "New Project Site"

# Modify Site Properties
Set-SPOSite -Identity https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite `
           -StorageQuota 2000 `
           -SharingCapability ExternalUserSharingOnly

# Remove Site Collection (moves to recycle bin)
Remove-SPOSite -Identity https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/oldsite -Confirm:$false

# Permanently Delete Site
Remove-SPODeletedSite -Identity https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/oldsite -Confirm:$false
            

User and Permission Management

# Add Site Collection Administrator
Set-SPOUser -Site https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite `
           -LoginName user@contoso.com `
           -IsSiteCollectionAdmin $true

# Get Site Users and Groups
Get-SPOSiteGroup -Site https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite
Get-SPOUser -Site https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite

# Manage External User Access
Add-SPOUser -Site https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite `
           -LoginName external@partner.com `
           -Group "Team Site Visitors"

# Remove User Access
Remove-SPOUser -Site https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite `
              -LoginName user@contoso.com
            

Search Configuration and Management

# Request Site Reindexing
Request-SPOReIndexWeb -Identity https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite

# Request List Reindexing
Request-SPOReIndexList -Identity https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite/lists/documents

# Export Search Configuration
Export-SPOSearchConfiguration -Owner "tenant" -Path "C:\SearchConfig.xml"

# Import Search Configuration
Import-SPOSearchConfiguration -Path "C:\SearchConfig.xml" -Owner "tenant"

# Get Search Center URL
Get-SPOTenant | Select SearchCenterUrl
            

Advanced PnP PowerShell Operations

List and Library Management

# Get All Lists
$lists = Get-PnPList
$documentLibraries = Get-PnPList | Where-Object {$_.BaseType -eq "DocumentLibrary"}

# Create New List
New-PnPList -Title "Project Tasks" -Template GenericList -Url "Lists/ProjectTasks"

# Create Document Library
New-PnPList -Title "Project Documents" -Template DocumentLibrary -Url "ProjectDocs"

# Add List Items
Add-PnPListItem -List "Project Tasks" -Values @{
    "Title" = "Complete Analysis"
    "Priority" = "High"
    "DueDate" = "2025-09-30"
}

# Update List Items
Set-PnPListItem -List "Project Tasks" -Identity 1 -Values @{
    "Status" = "Completed"
}

# Get List Items with Filtering
$items = Get-PnPListItem -List "Project Tasks" -Query "High"
            

Content Type and Field Management

# Get Content Types
$contentTypes = Get-PnPContentType
$documentCT = Get-PnPContentType -Identity "Document"

# Create New Content Type
$newCT = Add-PnPContentType -Name "Project Document" -Group "Custom Content Types" -ParentContentType $documentCT

# Add Field to Content Type
$field = Get-PnPField -Identity "ProjectPhase"
Add-PnPFieldToContentType -Field $field -ContentType $newCT

# Create Custom Field
Add-PnPField -DisplayName "Project Phase" -InternalName "ProjectPhase" -Type Choice -Choices @("Planning","Development","Testing","Deployment")

# Add Content Type to List
Add-PnPContentTypeToList -List "Project Documents" -ContentType $newCT
            

File and Document Management

# Upload Files
Add-PnPFile -Path "C:\Documents\ProjectPlan.docx" -Folder "Project Documents"

# Upload Large Files (>100MB)
Add-PnPFile -Path "C:\LargeFiles\Database.bak" -Folder "Backups" -UseWebDav

# Download Files
Get-PnPFile -Url "/sites/teamsite/Project Documents/ProjectPlan.docx" -Path "C:\Downloads\" -Filename "ProjectPlan.docx" -AsFile

# Copy Files Between Libraries
Copy-PnPFile -SourceUrl "/sites/source/Documents/file.docx" -TargetUrl "/sites/target/Archive/file.docx"

# Set File Properties
Set-PnPFileCheckedOut -Url "/sites/teamsite/Documents/ProjectPlan.docx"
Set-PnPFileCheckedIn -Url "/sites/teamsite/Documents/ProjectPlan.docx" -Comment "Updated project timeline"
            

Bulk Operations and Automation

Site Provisioning Script

# Bulk Site Creation Script
$siteRequests = @(
    @{Name="Finance Team"; Url="finance"; Owner="finance-lead@contoso.com"},
    @{Name="HR Team"; Url="hr"; Owner="hr-lead@contoso.com"},
    @{Name="IT Team"; Url="it"; Owner="it-lead@contoso.com"}
)

Connect-SPOService -Url https://contoso-admin.sharepoint.com -ModernAuth $true

foreach ($site in $siteRequests) {
    try {
        New-SPOSite -Url "https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/$($site.Url)" `
                   -Owner $site.Owner `
                   -Title $site.Name `
                   -StorageQuota 1000 `
                   -Template "STS#3"
        
        Write-Host "✓ Created site: $($site.Name)" -ForegroundColor Green
    }
    catch {
        Write-Host "✗ Failed to create site: $($site.Name) - $($_.Exception.Message)" -ForegroundColor Red
    }
}
            

User Audit and Reporting

# Site User Audit Script
$auditResults = @()
$sites = Get-SPOSite -Limit All

foreach ($site in $sites) {
    try {
        Connect-PnPOnline -Url $site.Url -Interactive
        
        $users = Get-PnPUser | Where-Object {$_.Email -ne ""}
        
        foreach ($user in $users) {
            $auditResults += [PSCustomObject]@{
                SiteUrl = $site.Url
                SiteTitle = $site.Title
                UserEmail = $user.Email
                UserTitle = $user.Title
                IsSiteAdmin = $user.IsSiteAdmin
                LastLoginTime = $user.UsageLocation
            }
        }
    }
    catch {
        Write-Warning "Could not process site: $($site.Url)"
    }
}

# Export Results
$auditResults | Export-Csv -Path "C:\Reports\SharePointUserAudit.csv" -NoTypeInformation
            

Best Practices

Script Development and Testing

Test in Development: Always test scripts in development environments first
Error Handling: Implement try-catch blocks for robust error management
Progress Tracking: Use Write-Progress for long-running operations
Logging: Implement comprehensive logging for audit trails
Parameterization: Use parameters and configuration files for flexibility

Authentication and Security

Modern Authentication: Always use modern authentication with MFA support
Service Accounts: Use dedicated service accounts for automated scripts
Certificate Authentication: Consider certificate-based authentication for production
Least Privilege: Use accounts with minimum required permissions
Session Management: Properly disconnect sessions after operations

Performance Optimization

Batch Operations: Use batch operations for multiple related tasks
Throttling Awareness: Implement delays to avoid throttling
Parallel Processing: Use parallel execution for independent operations
Efficient Queries: Use CAML queries and filters to limit data retrieval
Connection Reuse: Reuse connections within script execution

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Authentication Problems

Common Authentication Issues

MFA Challenges: Use -Interactive parameter for MFA-enabled accounts
Conditional Access: Ensure PowerShell access is allowed in conditional access policies
Legacy Authentication: Verify modern authentication is enabled for the tenant
Application Permissions: Check Azure AD app registrations and permissions

# Troubleshooting Authentication
# Test basic connectivity
Test-NetConnection login.microsoftonline.com -Port 443

# Check authentication method
Connect-PnPOnline -Url https://tenant.sharepoint.com/sites/site -Interactive -ForceAuthentication

# Verify context
$context = Get-PnPContext
Write-Host "Connected as: $($context.Web.CurrentUser.Email)"
                

Permission and Access Issues

# Check User Permissions
$user = Get-PnPUser -Identity "user@contoso.com"
$permissions = Get-PnPUserPermissions -User $user
Write-Host "User permissions: $($permissions -join ', ')"

# Verify Site Collection Admin
$site = Get-SPOSite -Identity https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/teamsite
Write-Host "Site Collection Admins: $($site.Owner)"

# Test Site Access
try {
    Connect-PnPOnline -Url $siteUrl -Interactive
    $web = Get-PnPWeb
    Write-Host "✓ Access confirmed: $($web.Title)" -ForegroundColor Green
}
catch {
    Write-Host "✗ Access denied: $($_.Exception.Message)" -ForegroundColor Red
}
            

Module and Version Issues

# Check Module Versions
Get-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -ListAvailable | Select Version, ModuleBase
Get-Module -Name Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell -ListAvailable | Select Version

# Update Modules
Update-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -Force
Update-Module -Name Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell -Force

# Resolve Module Conflicts
Remove-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -Force
Import-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -Force

# Check PowerShell Version
$PSVersionTable.PSVersion
            

Integration with Other SharePoint Tools

PowerShell + SharePoint Designer Replacement

Workflow Migration: Use Power Automate with PowerShell triggers
Custom Forms: PowerApps integration with PowerShell data sources
Site Templates: PowerShell-based site provisioning replacing SPD templates
Data Views: PnP PowerShell for creating custom list views and web parts

PowerShell + Microsoft 365 CLI

# Cross-platform alternative using Microsoft 365 CLI
npm install -g @pnp/cli-microsoft365

# Login
m365 login

# SharePoint operations
m365 spo site list
m365 spo site add --url https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/newsite --title "New Site"
m365 spo list add --webUrl https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/site --title "New List"
            

About the Author: Nagendra Jayaram is a Microsoft Sr Technical Advisor with 18+ years of enterprise experience specializing in SharePoint Online automation and PowerShell administration.