Azure VM - Cannot Add Automation Tasks

Matthew Hunt 25 Reputation points
2026-06-02T14:27:28.75+00:00

Hi There!

As of a few days ago May 2026, I am noticing that existing Azure VM Automation Tasks, like 'Start a Virtual Machine" are no longer available as shown below. How do I restore the ability to add automation tasks to my affected VM's. This is on every existing VM and all Tenants and subscriptions I have checked, and at least Canada Central and US East 2 regions. with different accounts and permission levels.**
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Thoughts? Is this related to recent Azure service interruptions? Do I need to re-import an ARM template to my Azure Subscriptions?
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Thank you in Advance!

Matt Hunt

Azure Automation
Azure Automation

An Azure service that is used to automate, configure, and install updates across hybrid environments.

Answer accepted by question author

Zoltan Kozma 80 Reputation points Microsoft Employee
2026-06-12T08:47:41.6333333+00:00

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  1. Bharath Y P 10,355 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-06-05T05:08:59.0066667+00:00

    Hello Matthew,

    Thanks for reporting this behavior. From what you described, this does not appear to be isolated to a single VM, subscription, or permission scope since you're seeing the issue across multiple tenants, subscriptions, regions, and accounts.

    The Automation > Tasks experience for Azure VMs is backed by Azure Logic Apps (Consumption). When the built-in task templates such as Start VM, Stop VM, or Deallocate VM disappear and the portal shows messages similar to "No task templates found in this region”, it is commonly related to one of the following:

    1. Microsoft.Logic resource provider not registered

    Please verify that the Microsoft.Logic resource provider is registered in the affected subscription.

    Steps:

    1. Go to Subscription
    2. Open Resource providers
    3. Search for Microsoft.Logic
    4. If the status is Not Registered, select Register
    5. Wait a few minutes and refresh the VM > Automation > Tasks blade
    6. Logic Apps Consumption availability in the VM region

    Automation Tasks depend on Logic Apps Consumption workflows being available in the same Azure region as the VM.

    Please verify regional support here: https://azure.microsoft.com/global-infrastructure/services/?products=logic%20apps&regions=all

    You mentioned Canada Central and East US 2, which normally support Logic Apps, so this may indicate a temporary backend/platform issue rather than a configuration problem.

    1. RBAC or Azure Policy restrictions

    Ensure the account used has at least:

    • Contributor access on the Resource Group, or
    • permissions allowing creation of:
      • Microsoft.Logic/workflows
        • API connections

    Also review whether any Azure Policy assignments are blocking Logic App workflow creation.

    1. Test in another supported region

    As a quick validation step:

    • Deploy a temporary VM in another well-known supported region
    • Check whether the Automation > Tasks templates appear there

    If templates appear in another region, it strongly suggests a regional backend/service issue rather than a tenant configuration issue.

    There have recently been reports from other users experiencing similar symptoms with Automation Tasks and Logic App-backed VM scheduling workflows.

    If the issue continues even after RP registration and RBAC validation, If still affecting Automation Tasks discovery in your subscriptions/regions please do let us know.

    Hope this helps. Thanks

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  2. Anna Lowery 1 Reputation point
    2026-06-05T03:50:33.9766667+00:00

    We are also experiencing this issue across our VMs - Location is Australia East.
    We had this option before, but have found in the last few days we are unable to create new tasks.

    Would love to know if you get any resolutions!

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  3. Matthew Hunt 25 Reputation points
    2026-06-02T14:51:46.1066667+00:00

    The method to export an existing Logic App (By AI below #2) to the Automation Task templates did not work, so I am assuming this is an Azure wide service issue, and will try to find a subscription I can open a support case on, without having to pay for it!

    Thanks

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  4. AI answer

    2026-06-02T14:27:56.1766667+00:00

    For Azure virtual machines, the built‑in Automation Task templates (such as Start Virtual Machine, Power off Virtual Machine, and Deallocate Virtual Machine) are provided by Logic Apps and are region dependent.

    The documented behavior is:

    • Automation tasks are created from task templates that are backed by Logic Apps workflows.
    • The templates are only available in regions where Logic Apps is available for the selected resource.
    • When adding a task, if no templates are found, the portal instructs to "try using a resource located in a different region where Logic Apps is available."

    In the current documentation, the available templates for Azure virtual machines are:

    • Send monthly cost for resource (all Azure resources)
    • Power off Virtual Machine
    • Start Virtual Machine
    • Deallocate Virtual Machine

    If the “Add a task” blade shows no templates for VMs in a specific region (for example, Canada Central), this indicates that the portal is not exposing the Logic Apps–backed templates for that region at this time. This is a platform/region availability issue rather than something that can be fixed by re‑importing ARM templates into a subscription.

    To restore the ability to automate start/stop operations while templates are unavailable in that region, use one of these approaches:

    1. Create a Logic Apps workflow in a region where Logic Apps is available and use it to start/stop the VM on a schedule.
    2. Export an existing Logic Apps workflow as an Automation Task template and reuse it:
      • Open the Logic App (Consumption) that contains the workflow.
      • On Overview, select Export > Export to Automation Task.
      • Provide a template name and description.
      • Optionally specify supported resource types such as Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines so the template appears for VMs.

    Once exported, that custom template will appear as an Automation Task template for the supported resource types (and regions) configured in the export dialog.

    If templates are missing across all subscriptions and tenants in a region where they previously existed, this points to a service‑side change or incident. In that case, open a support ticket with Azure Support so the product group can confirm regional availability and restore the built‑in templates if needed.

    References:

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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