Automation Account How to Stop and start Multiples VMS

Question

How to Start and Stop Multiple VMs Using Specific Tag Keys and Values in an Automation Account.

Answer 1

Hi Akhila Anne

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Please follow the below steps:

1)Create an Automation Account and ensure that your automation account has the required permissions

2)Create two runbooks: one for stopping VMs and another for starting VMs.

Runbook 1:

Use the following PowerShell script to stop VMs based on specified tags.

# Connect to Azure with system-assigned managed identity
$AzureContext = (Connect-AzAccount -Identity).context
# set and store context
$AzureContext = Set-AzContext -SubscriptionName $AzureContext.Subscription -DefaultProfile $AzureContext
# Connect to Azure (if not already connected)
#Connect-AzAccount
Select-AzSubscription -Subscription "SubscriptionName"
# Define the tag key and value
$TagKey = "Environment"
$TagValue = "dev-Autoshutdown"
# Get all VMs that have the specified tag value
$VMs = Get-AzVM | Where-Object { $_.Tags[$TagKey] -eq $TagValue }
# Stop the VMs
foreach ($VM in $VMs) {
    Write-Host "Stopping VM: $($VM.Name) in Resource Group: $($VM.ResourceGroupName)"
    #For Stop use the Below Command in the Stop Dev VMs Run book
    Stop-AzVM -Name $VM.Name -ResourceGroupName $VM.ResourceGroupName -Force
}
Write-Host "All dev-test tagged VMs have been powered off."

Runbook 2:

Use the following PowerShell script to start VMs based on specified tags.

# Connect to Azure with system-assigned managed identity
$AzureContext = (Connect-AzAccount -Identity).context
# set and store context
$AzureContext = Set-AzContext -SubscriptionName $AzureContext.Subscription -DefaultProfile $AzureContext
# Connect to Azure (if not already connected)
#Connect-AzAccount
Select-AzSubscription -Subscription "SubscriptionName"
# Define the tag key and value
$TagKey = "Environment"
$TagValue = "dev-Autostart"
# Get all VMs that have the specified tag value
$VMs = Get-AzVM | Where-Object { $_.Tags[$TagKey] -eq $TagValue }
# Start the VMs
foreach ($VM in $VMs) {
    Write-Host "Starting VM: $($VM.Name) in Resource Group: $($VM.ResourceGroupName)"
     #For start use the Below Command in the Start Dev VMs Run book
    Start-AzVM -Name $VM.Name -ResourceGroupName $VM.ResourceGroupName
}
Write-Host "All dev-test tagged VMs have been powered on."

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