Changes made in Microsoft 365 (new users, updated profiles, removed accounts) don't appear in People Directory Plus instantly. This is expected behavior caused by SharePoint's multi-stage sync pipeline.
How data flows from Microsoft 365 to the directory
People Directory Plus reads from the SharePoint Search Index, which is the last stop in a three-stage pipeline:
Each stage runs on its own schedule, so a change in Azure AD must pass through all three stages before it appears in the directory.
Expected sync timelines
| Stage | Typical delay |
|---|---|
| Azure AD → User Profile Service | Up to 24 hours |
| User Profile Service → Search Index | 2 – 8 hours (continuous crawl) |
| Total (worst case) | 24 – 48 hours |
In practice, most profile updates appear within a few hours. New user accounts take the longest because they must be provisioned from scratch in all three systems.
How to force a sync
If you need changes to appear sooner, you can request a re-index of all user profiles using PnP PowerShell:
# Connect to your SharePoint admin center
Connect-PnPOnline -Url https://yourtenant-admin.sharepoint.com -Interactive
# Request a full re-index of all user profiles
Request-PnPReindexUserProfileThis tells SharePoint to re-crawl all user profiles on the next crawl cycle. It does not make changes instant — it typically takes 2–8 hours for the search index to catch up.
How to verify the sync is working
1. Check the User Profile Service
Open the SharePoint Admin Center → More features → User profiles → Manage User Profiles. Search for the user in question. If their profile appears here with the correct data, the Azure AD → UPS sync is complete and you're waiting on the search crawl.
2. Test the Search Index directly
Run this REST query in your browser (replace yourtenant and user@domain.com):
https://yourtenant.sharepoint.com/_api/search/query?querytext='UserName:user@domain.com'&sourceid='b09a7990-05ea-4af9-81ef-edfab16c4e31'If the user appears in the results, the search index is up to date and they should appear in the directory. If not, the crawl hasn't reached their profile yet.
Ongoing best practices
- Schedule a weekly re-index — Use a scheduled task or Azure Automation runbook to call
Request-PnPReindexUserProfileweekly so the search index stays fresh. - Allow 24–48 hours for new users — Set expectations with your team that new hires won't appear in the directory on day one.
- Check UPS first — If a user is missing from UPS, the issue is upstream (Azure AD sync) and re-indexing won't help.
