Migrating from New-MsolUser to New-MgUser

With Microsoft deprecating the AzureAD and MSOnline modules in favor of the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK, it's essential for IT admins to transition their scripts and workflows. One of the most common tasks—creating users—was traditionally done using the New-MsolUser cmdlet. But now, New-MgUser is the way forward.

In this article, we’ll break down the transition, help you understand the differences, and give you updated script examples for a smooth migration.

What You Did Previously with New-MsolUser

New-MsolUser -DisplayName "John Doe" `
    -UserPrincipalName "john.doe@yourdomain.com" `
    -FirstName "John" `
    -LastName "Doe" `
    -Password "Password123" `
    -ForceChangePassword $true

For bulk creation, you might’ve imported from a CSV:

$users = Import-Csv -Path "Users.csv"
foreach ($user in $users) {
    New-MsolUser -DisplayName $user.DisplayName `
        -UserPrincipalName $user.UserPrincipalName `
        -Password $user.Password `
        -ForceChangePassword $true
}

What You Should Do Now with New-MgUser

The equivalent task using the Microsoft Graph module (New-MgUser) would look like this:

Basic User Creation

New-MgUser -DisplayName "John Doe" `
    -UserPrincipalName "john.doe@yourdomain.com" `
    -MailNickname "john.doe" `
    -PasswordProfile @{Password="Password123"; ForceChangePasswordNextSignIn=$true} `
    -AccountEnabled 

Bulk User Creation

$users = Import-Csv -Path "Users.csv"
    foreach ($user in $users) {
        $userParams = @{
                DisplayName        = $user.DisplayName
                UserPrincipalName  = $user.UserPrincipalName
                MailNickname       = $user.MailNickname
                AccountEnabled     = $true
                PasswordProfile    = @{
                        Password = $user.Password
                        ForceChangePasswordNextSignIn = $true
                    }
                }
        New-MgUser -BodyParameter $userParams
    }
                                            

What’s Different with New-MgUser?

Old (New-MsolUser)	New (New-MgUser)
Uses individual parameters for each field	Encourages using a hashtable via -BodyParameter
Accepts plain -Password parameter	Uses PasswordProfile as a nested object
Limited scope to Azure AD	Part of Microsoft.Graph.Users module
Deprecated by Microsoft	Built on Microsoft Graph API – broader capabilities
Device Management	Actively developed and supported

Additional Changes

• You must include a MailNickname when creating users with New-MgUser.
• PasswordProfile requires both Password and ForceChangePasswordNextSignIn.
• Graph API requires AccountEnabled flag explicitly to activate the account.

Conclusion

The transition from New-MsolUser to New-MgUser may seem like a shift at first, but it brings enhanced capabilities, modern practices, and better compatibility with Microsoft 365 services.

Microsoft Graph is the future—and the sooner your scripts make the leap, the more future-proof your automation becomes.

Need more migration guides or scripts? Visit M365Corner.com — your trusted resource for everything Graph PowerShell!