SharePoint Online: Permission Report for Specific User in a Site Collection using PowerShell

Requirement: Generate a permission report to audit a specific user’s permissions in given SharePoint Online site collection, sub-sites, all its lists, libraries and list items.

SharePoint Online PowerShell permissions report
This PowerShell script checks user permissions and exports the findings into a CSV file. How to run this script? Just change the Parameters from Line#6 to Line#8 according to your environment and hit run.

PowerShell script

SharePoint Online: PowerShell to get user permissions on a given site collection
Please note, there is a limitation in the script: This PowerShell script doesn’t scan Active Directory security groups!

#Load SharePoint CSOM Assemblies
Add-Type -Path "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\16\ISAPI\Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.dll"
Add-Type -Path "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\16\ISAPI\Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.Runtime.dll"
  
#Set parameter values
$SiteURL="https://crescent.sharepoint.com/sites/Ops"
$UserAccount="i:0#.f|membership|Salaudeen@Crescent.com"
$ReportFile="C:\Temp\PermissionRpt.csv"

#To call a non-generic method Load
Function Invoke-LoadMethod() {
    param(
            [Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.ClientObject]$Object = $(throw "Please provide a Client Object"),
            [string]$PropertyName
        )
   $ctx = $Object.Context
   $load = [Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.ClientContext].GetMethod("Load")
   $type = $Object.GetType()
   $clientLoad = $load.MakeGenericMethod($type)
  
   $Parameter = [System.Linq.Expressions.Expression]::Parameter(($type), $type.Name)
   $Expression = [System.Linq.Expressions.Expression]::Lambda([System.Linq.Expressions.Expression]::Convert([System.Linq.Expressions.Expression]::PropertyOrField($Parameter,$PropertyName),[System.Object] ), $($Parameter))
   $ExpressionArray = [System.Array]::CreateInstance($Expression.GetType(), 1)
   $ExpressionArray.SetValue($Expression, 0)
   $clientLoad.Invoke($ctx,@($Object,$ExpressionArray))
}

#Get Permissions Applied on a particular Object, such as: Web, List, Folder or Item
Function Get-Permissions([Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.SecurableObject]$Object)
{
    #Determine the type of the object
    Switch($Object.TypedObject.ToString())
    {
        "Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.Web"  { $ObjectType = "Site" ; $ObjectURL = $Object.URL }
        "Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.ListItem"
        {
            $ObjectType = "List Item/Folder"

            #Get the URL of the List Item
            Invoke-LoadMethod -Object $Object.ParentList -PropertyName "DefaultDisplayFormUrl"
            $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()
            $DefaultDisplayFormUrl = $Object.ParentList.DefaultDisplayFormUrl
            $ObjectURL = $("{0}{1}?ID={2}" -f $Ctx.Web.Url.Replace($Ctx.Web.ServerRelativeUrl,''), $DefaultDisplayFormUrl,$Object.ID)
        }
        Default
        {
            $ObjectType = "List/Library"
            #Get the URL of the List or Library
            $Ctx.Load($Object.RootFolder)
            $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()           
            $ObjectURL = $("{0}{1}" -f $Ctx.Web.Url.Replace($Ctx.Web.ServerRelativeUrl,''), $Object.RootFolder.ServerRelativeUrl)
        }
    }

    #Get permissions assigned to the object
    $Ctx.Load($Object.RoleAssignments)
    $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

    Foreach($RoleAssignment in $Object.RoleAssignments)
    {
                $Ctx.Load($RoleAssignment.Member)
                $Ctx.executeQuery()

                #Check direct permissions
                if($RoleAssignment.Member.PrincipalType -eq "User")
                {
                    #Is the current user is the user we search for?
                    if($RoleAssignment.Member.LoginName -eq $SearchUser.LoginName)
                    {
                        Write-Host  -f Cyan "Found the User under direct permissions of the $($ObjectType) at $($ObjectURL)"
                         
                        #Get the Permissions assigned to user
                        $UserPermissions=@()
                        $Ctx.Load($RoleAssignment.RoleDefinitionBindings)
                        $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()
                        foreach ($RoleDefinition in $RoleAssignment.RoleDefinitionBindings)
                        {
                            $UserPermissions += $RoleDefinition.Name +";"
                        }
                        #Send the Data to Report file
                        "$($ObjectURL) `t $($ObjectType) `t $($Object.Title)`t Direct Permission `t $($UserPermissions)" | Out-File $ReportFile -Append
                    }
                }
                 
                Elseif($RoleAssignment.Member.PrincipalType -eq "SharePointGroup")
                {
                        #Search inside SharePoint Groups and check if the user is member of that group
                        $Group= $Web.SiteGroups.GetByName($RoleAssignment.Member.LoginName)
                        $GroupUsers=$Group.Users
                        $Ctx.Load($GroupUsers)
                        $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

                        #Check if user is member of the group
                        Foreach($User in $GroupUsers)
                        {
                            #Check if the search users is member of the group
                            if($user.LoginName -eq $SearchUser.LoginName)
                            {
                                Write-Host -f Cyan "Found the User under Member of the Group '"$RoleAssignment.Member.LoginName"' on $($ObjectType) at $($ObjectURL)"

                                #Get the Group's Permissions on site
                                $GroupPermissions=@()
                                $Ctx.Load($RoleAssignment.RoleDefinitionBindings)
                                $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()
                                Foreach ($RoleDefinition  in $RoleAssignment.RoleDefinitionBindings)
                                {
                                    $GroupPermissions += $RoleDefinition.Name +";"
                                }         
                                #Send the Data to Report file
                                "$($ObjectURL) `t $($ObjectType) `t $($Object.Title)`t Member of '$($RoleAssignment.Member.LoginName)' Group `t $($GroupPermissions)" | Out-File $ReportFile -Append
                            }
                        }
                }
            }
}

Try {
        #Get Credentials to connect
        $Cred= Get-Credential
        $Credentials = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.SharePointOnlineCredentials($Cred.Username, $Cred.Password)
  
        #Setup the context
        $Ctx = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.ClientContext($SiteURL)
        $Ctx.Credentials = $Credentials

        #Get the Web
        $Web = $Ctx.Web
        $Ctx.Load($Web)
        $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

        #Get the User object
        $SearchUser = $Web.EnsureUser($UserAccount)
        $Ctx.Load($SearchUser)
        $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

        #Write CSV- TAB Separated File) Header
        "URL `t Object `t Title `t PermissionType `t Permissions" | out-file $ReportFile

        Write-host -f Yellow "Searching in the Site Collection Administrators Group..."
        #Check if Site Collection Admin
        If($SearchUser.IsSiteAdmin -eq $True)
        {
            Write-host -f Cyan "Found the User under Site Collection Administrators Group!"
            #Send the Data to report file
           "$($Web.URL) `t Site Collection `t $($Web.Title)`t Site Collection Administrator `t Site Collection Administrator" | Out-File $ReportFile -Append
         }

        #Function to Check Permissions of All List Items of a given List
        Function Check-SPOListItemsPermission([Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.List]$List)
        {
            Write-host -f Yellow "Searching in List Items of the List '"$List.Title "'..."
            $ListItems = $List.GetItems([Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.CamlQuery]::CreateAllItemsQuery())
            $Ctx.Load($ListItems)
            $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

            foreach($ListItem in $ListItems)
            {
                Invoke-LoadMethod -Object $ListItem -PropertyName "HasUniqueRoleAssignments"
                $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()
                if ($ListItem.HasUniqueRoleAssignments -eq $true)
                {
                    #Call the function to generate Permission report
                    Get-Permissions -Object $ListItem
                }
            }
        }

        #Function to Check Permissions of all lists from the web
        Function Check-SPOListPermission([Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.Web]$Web)
        {
            #Get All Lists from the web
            $Lists = $Web.Lists
            $Ctx.Load($Lists)
            $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

            #Get all lists from the web  
            ForEach($List in $Lists)
            {
                #Exclude System Lists
                If($List.Hidden -eq $False)
                {
                    #Get List Items Permissions
                    Check-SPOListItemsPermission $List

                    #Get the Lists with Unique permission
                    Invoke-LoadMethod -Object $List -PropertyName "HasUniqueRoleAssignments"
                    $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

                    If( $List.HasUniqueRoleAssignments -eq $True)
                    {
                        #Call the function to check permissions
                        Get-Permissions -Object $List
                    }
                }
            }
        }

        #Function to Check Webs's Permissions from given URL
        Function Check-SPOWebPermission([Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.Web]$Web)
        {
            #Get all immediate subsites of the site
            $Ctx.Load($web.Webs) 
            $Ctx.executeQuery()
  
            #Call the function to Get Lists of the web
            Write-host -f Yellow "Searching in the Web "$Web.URL"..."

            #Check if the Web has unique permissions
            Invoke-LoadMethod -Object $Web -PropertyName "HasUniqueRoleAssignments"
            $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()

            #Get the Web's Permissions
            If($web.HasUniqueRoleAssignments -eq $true)
            {
                Get-Permissions -Object $Web
            }

            #Scan Lists with Unique Permissions
            Write-host -f Yellow "Searching in the Lists and Libraries of "$Web.URL"..."
            Check-SPOListPermission($Web)
  
            #Iterate through each subsite in the current web
            Foreach ($Subweb in $web.Webs)
            {
                    #Call the function recursively                           
                    Check-SPOWebPermission($SubWeb)
            }
        }

        #Call the function with RootWeb to get site collection permissions
        Check-SPOWebPermission $Web

        Write-host -f Green "User Permission Report Generated Successfully!"
     }
    Catch {
        write-host -f Red "Error Generating User Permission Report!" $_.Exception.Message
   }

Script generates a CSV file in below format: