Increase 1000 Records Maximum Page Size of Active Directory

Just wanted to share a common question that is always asked on why Active Directory returns only 1000 results when you perform a query.  It is a limitation imposed by Active Directory by default, but it does not mean you cannot increase that values.  You can always increase it by changing the MaxPageSize setting in Active Directory but do it with proper caution as it set at 1000 for a reason.

Now if you know the implications of changing it like slowing down the performance of your Active Directory Operations then here is how to increse it.

All you need is to use Ntdsutil.exe which you can type on the run command but if you are using Windows 2008 make sure run the command prompt as an administrator

Once you typed it it will show you the command prompt and follow these steps to increase the limit.

1. At the Ntdsutil.exe command prompt, type “LDAP policies”, and then hit ENTER.
2. Now type “Set MaxPageSize to 5000”. -> Change 5000 to the Max results you want
3. To view the changes, type “Show Values”
4. To commit the changes, type “Commit Changes”
5. type “q” to quit