PowerShell Script to Enable Alternate Language(s) in SharePoint 2010

MUI setting is a web level setting and it cannot be set in the site collection level. Therefore enable multilingual user interface manually for a big site collection is a tedious job. (More information on Alternate Language(s) in SharePoint 2010 ishere.)

Following PowerShell script automates the task by setting SPWeb.IsMultilingual property in the specified Web and in it’s all sub Webs. In addition it checks for the installed languages on the server farm and add them to the list of alternative languages supported by the website's multilingual user interface.

# Enable alternate English language for all sub-sites

function EnableAlternateLanguageForAllSubWebs([Microsoft.SharePoint.SPWeb] $web)

{

  $installed = [Microsoft.SharePoint.SPRegionalSettings]::GlobalInstalledLanguages

  $subwebs = $web.GetSubwebsForCurrentUser()

  foreach($subweb in $subwebs)

  {

    $subweb.IsMultiLingual = $true;

    $supportedCultures = $subweb.SupportedUICultures;

    foreach ($lang in $installed)

    {

      $cultureinfo = [System.Globalization.CultureInfo]::GetCultureInfo($lang.LCID);

      $exists = $supportedCultures | Where-Object{$_.LCID -eq $lang.LCID}

      if ($exists -eq $null)

      {

        $subweb.AddSupportedUICulture($cultureinfo)

        Write-Host "Added" $cultureinfo.Name "to URL" $subweb.Url

      }

    }

    $subweb.Update()

  }

}

$web = Get-SPWeb "http://ca.nav.com/texas/"

$DebugPreference = "Continue"

If ($web -ne $null)

{

    EnableAlternateLanguageForAllSubWebs $web

}

It should be noted that exception will be thrown, if the SPWeb.IsMultilingual property is set to ‘true’ on a website where;

• Website has customized CSS files. 
• Website based on a template that does not support a multilingual user interface.

Note:

C# script for adding alternate language support is illustrated in the MSDN in article: Understandingthe Multilingual User Interface here.