{"id":5558,"date":"2013-07-15T08:32:16","date_gmt":"2013-07-15T16:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zubairalexander.com\/stage\/?p=5558"},"modified":"2022-04-13T14:02:05","modified_gmt":"2022-04-13T21:02:05","slug":"the-strange-way-in-which-active-directory-implements-the-full-name-attribute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zubairalexander.com\/blog\/the-strange-way-in-which-active-directory-implements-the-full-name-attribute\/","title":{"rendered":"The Strange Way in Which Active Directory Implements the Full Name Attribute"},"content":{"rendered":"

Did you know that the full name, first name, last name, display name, logon name, and Pre-Windows 2000 account name can all be different for a single user account in Active Directory?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

There are some things in software products that are implemented in such a bizarre way that I can\u2019t resist writing about them. One such example is the Full Name<\/em> attribute in Active Directory accounts. The way Microsoft implements Full Name is rather interesting. Do not confuse Full Name with Display Name. They are two completely different attributes. By default, the Display Name is a combination of a user\u2019s first and last name. Unlike Display Name, the Full Name attribute is not visible in the graphical user interface (GUI) and cannot be set within the properties of the user account.<\/p>\n

Try this. Look at all the properties of a user account closely. You won\u2019t find full name anywhere. Yes, you cannot go to a screen and look at the full name. You will find display name, which is not the name that is displayed in Active Directory Users and Computers. So, what is the actual Display Name<\/em> that is displayed in Active Directory Users and Computers? Well, believe it or not, the actual name that is displayed is the full name. The next obvious question you are going to ask is how do I change the full name if it\u2019s not shown in the GUI? Answer: By right clicking the account and selecting Rename you will notice a pop-up Window that will show you the full name. That\u2019s the only time you will find the screen that shows the full name.<\/p>\n

So, let\u2019s summarize what we\u2019ve learned so far. The Full Name<\/em> is by default a combination of a user\u2019s first and last name, but it can be a combination of anything you want, totally unrelated to the actual first or last name. The first name, last name, display name and the full name can be completely independent of each other. You can literally have a first name Bill, last name Gates, display name Steve Ballmer, a logon name Melinda and a full name Brad Smith. Play around with these attributes and you will see what I mean.<\/p>\n

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By the way, the logon name of the user and the SAM account name (Pre-Windows 2000 name) can also be completely independent. So, Bill Gates logon name can be Melinda. The logon and Pre-Windows 2000 names are configured on the Account tab of the user account properties.<\/p>\n

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As I mentioned earlier, the Display name is not the name that is displayed in the Active Directory Users and Computers. The real display name is \u201cFull Name\u201d, it\u2019s just not called Display name. To display what I call the \u201creal\u201d display name requires that you change the Full Name by right clicking the user account. I changed the Full Name (i.e., Display name) to Brad Smith. So what we have is the following.<\/p>\n