Accessing user profile information in WSS 3.0 with javascript

31.10.2009: Small update for default picture in the example CEWP.

This article describes how to access the “user profile” under WSS 3.0 via javascript. The method used is a query trough the webservice lists.asmx.

I use some code (“interaction.js” and stringBuffer.js”) created by Erucy and published on codeplex.

The jQuery-library is found here. The pictures and the sourcecode refers to jquery-1.3.2.min. If you download another version, be sure to update the script reference in the sourcecode.

As always we begin like this:
Create a document library to hold your scripts (or a folder on the root created in SharePoint Designer). In this example i have made a document library with a relative URL of “/test/English/Javascript” (a subsite named “test” with a subsite named “English” with a document library named “Javascript”):

You can call this script from any page. In this example i will place it on Default.aspx.

NOTE!
If your site collection resides on a managed path, “wsBaseUrl” in the script must reflect the root of your site collection like this: wsBaseUrl = ‘/myManagedPath/_vti_bin/’;

The sourcecode for the “AccessUserProfileInWSS.js” looks like this:

/* getUserInfo - Returns "user info" data from user list in WSS 3.0 (not MOSS user profile)
 * ---------------------------------------------
 * Created by Alexander Bautz
 * alexander.bautz@gmail.com
 * http://sharepointjavascript.wordpress.com
 * LastMod: 20.09.2009
 * ---------------------------------------------

Define userListGuid (list guid of the user list on your root site) as variable accessible to this script
Refer these scripts:
 interaction.js // Erucy - http://spjslib.codeplex.com
 stringBuffer.js // Erucy - http://spjslib.codeplex.com
 jQuery // http://jQuery.com

Use:
 var ui = getUserInfo(); // If UserId is not specified it assumes it's logged in user (_spUserId)
 alert(ui.Title);
*/

userListGuid = "{680230C5-1095-4247-AA06-9A90CA5539D8}";  // refer userListGuid - do not use this Guid - find your own!

function getUserInfo(UserId){
wsBaseUrl = '/_vti_bin/';
// If your site collection resides on a managed path, "wsBaseUrl" must reflect the root of your site collection like this:
// wsBaseUrl = '/myManagedPath/_vti_bin/';
var uiObj = {};

if(typeof(UserId)=="undefined" || UserId=='')UserId = _spUserId;

var arrOfFields = ['ID', 'Name', 'Title', 'EMail', 'Department', 'JobTitle', 'Notes', 'Picture',
'IsSiteAdmin', 'Created', 'Author', 'Modified', 'Editor', 'SipAddress', 'Deleted'];

var item = getItemById(userListGuid,UserId,arrOfFields);
    if(item != null){
	    for(i=0;i<arrOfFields.length;i++){
	    	if(item[arrOfFields[i]]!=null){
	    		uiObj[arrOfFields[i]] = item[arrOfFields[i]];
	    	}else{
	    		uiObj[arrOfFields[i]] = '';
	    	}
	    }
       	return uiObj;
    }else{
        for(i=0;i<arrOfFields.length;i++){
    		uiObj[arrOfFields[i]] = "User with id " + UserId + " not found.";
    	}
		return uiObj;
	}
}

Save this as a text file and rename to “AccessUserProfileInWSS.js”, then upload to the library as shown above.

This code requires the list guid of the “UserList” in your root site defined as the variable “userListGuid”.

You find the list guid like this:

You call the script from a standard CEWP like this:

Sourcecode for CEWP:

<script type="text/javascript" src="/test/English/Javascript/jquery-1.3.2.min.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="/test/English/Javascript/interaction.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="/test/English/Javascript/stringBuffer.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="/test/English/Javascript/AccessUserProfileInWSS.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">

var ui = getUserInfo(); // If UserId is not specified it assumes it's logged in user (_spUserId)
picSrc = '/_layouts/images/person.gif';
if(ui.Picture!=''){
picSrc = ui.Picture.split(',')[0]
}
var str = '';
str += "Accountname: " + ui.Name + "<br>";
str += "Full name: " + ui.Title + "<br>";
str += "E-mail: " + ui.EMail + "<br>";
str += "Department: " + ui.Department + "<br>";
str += "<img alt='' src='" + picSrc + "' />";

document.write(str);
</script>

And you get a result like this:

I will follow up this article with an article describing how to hide or show form fields based on membership – or not membership – in a SharePoint group.

Alexander