---
title: Identify Existing User node
description: Looks up a user identity by a specified attribute such as email address and writes the matching identifier to shared node state, for use in forgotten password flows.
component: platform
version: 7.5
page_id: platform:auth-node-ref:identify-existing-user
canonical_url: https://docs.pingidentity.com/platform/7.5/auth-node-ref/identify-existing-user.html
llms_txt: https://docs.pingidentity.com/platform/llms.txt
docs_for_agents: https://developer.pingidentity.com/build-with-ai/docs-for-agents.md
keywords: ["Nodes & Trees", "Journeys", "Authentication", "Forgotten Password"]
page_aliases: ["auth-node-identify-existing-user.adoc"]
section_ids:
  availability: Availability
  inputs: Inputs
  dependencies: Dependencies
  configuration: Configuration
  outputs: Outputs
  outcomes: Outcomes
  errors: Errors
  example: Example
---

# Identify Existing User node

The Identify Existing User node verifies if a user exists based on an identifying attribute, such as an email address, then makes the value of a specified attribute available in the shared node state.

Use this node in a forgotten password flow to fetch a username to email to the user. To display the username on the screen, use the [Display Username node](display-username.html) instead.

## Availability

| Product                                                                                                                                 | Available? |
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------- |
| PingOne Advanced Identity Cloud                                                                                                         | Yes        |
| PingAM (self-managed)

This functionality requires that you configure AM as part of a sample Ping Identity Platform deployment. | Yes        |
| Ping Identity Platform (self-managed)                                                                                                   | Yes        |

## Inputs

This node reads the Identity Attribute (default: `mail`) from the shared node state.

If the Identity Attribute is not available, it reads the `userName` from the shared node state.

## Dependencies

This node depends on IDM to store the user profile.

## Configuration

| Property           | Usage                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |
| ------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Identifier         | The attribute to collect from a managed identity object.Default: `userName`                                                                                                                                                            |
| Identity Attribute | The attribute used to identify the managed object in IDM.When this node serves to recover a username, the identity attribute should be some other attribute that is unique to a user object, such as the email address.Default: `mail` |

## Outputs

The node writes the Identifier and the user account `_id` to the shared node state.

If the Identifier differs from `userName`, this node also writes the `userName` to the shared node state.

## Outcomes

* `True`

  The node successfully identified the user and updated the shared node state.

* `False`

  Any other case.

## Errors

This node does not log error or warning messages of its own.

## Example

The following example shows a flow to reset a forgotten password:

![Use this node to help reset a forgotten password](_images/trees-node-email-suspend-example-platform.png)

* The user enters their email in the [Attribute Collector node](attribute-collector.html) of the [Page node](page.html).

* The Identify Existing User node uses the email address to look up the username of the user's account. If it finds the user account, it adds the username to the shared node state.

* The [Email Suspend node](email-suspend.html) emails the user and suspends authentication.

* Once authentication resumes, the [Inner Tree Evaluator node](inner-tree-evaluator.html) sends the user to a different flow to reset their password.