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Swahlea's avatar
Swahlea
Copper Contributor
Jul 03, 2025

Bulk Start/Stop of Azure Virtual Desktop Session Hosts in a Host Pool via Single Trigger

Hi Community,

We manage an Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) host pool with a large number of session hosts (e.g., around 100), and we’re looking for a way to start or stop all session hosts in bulk using a single trigger—preferably via PowerShell or an API.

Currently, we use a scheduled script that loops through each VM individually to start or stop them, but this approach doesn't scale well. We’ve noticed that the Azure Portal provides a one-click option to start or stop all session hosts in a host pool, and we’re trying to replicate that behavior programmatically.

What We’re Looking For:

  • A PowerShell command or script that can start/stop all session hosts in a host pool without iterating through each VM.
  • If PowerShell doesn’t support this directly, is there an ARM template, Azure CLI command, REST API, or any other method that can be triggered from PowerShell to perform this bulk action?
  • Any official documentation, community guidance, or examples from someone who has achieved this would be greatly appreciated.

Goal:

To simplify and optimize our automation by using a single command or API call to manage all session hosts in a host pool, rather than looping through each machine individually.

Thanks in advance for your help and suggestions!

ARM
AVD
azure
Azure Virtual Dekstop
powershell

3 Replies

  • KartikDogra's avatar
    KartikDogra
    Brass Contributor
    Jul 07, 2025

    why are we not using autoscaling option to shutdown the machines ?

  • Chris_toffer0707's avatar
    Chris_toffer0707
    Iron Contributor
    Jul 05, 2025

    I use parallel jobs in PowerShell just like Kidd mentioned.

    Then I use Azure DevOps with a service connection to the subcription hosting the session hosts. The script then executes via a pipeline written i YAML that have the scheduled trigger. 

    If the script fails on some VMs, writing a simple error handling that can be catched and printed by the end of the job can also be useful in Azure DevOps to monitor reboot completion. 

  • Kidd_Ip's avatar
    Kidd_Ip
    MVP
    Jul 04, 2025

    How about Azre Automation with parallel jobs:

     

    $sessionHosts = Get-AzWvdSessionHost -ResourceGroupName "YourRG" -HostPoolName "YourHostPool"

$jobs = foreach ($host in $sessionHosts) {
    Start-Job -ScriptBlock {
        param($vmId)
        Start-AzVM -ResourceId $vmId
    } -ArgumentList $host.ResourceId
}

# Wait for all jobs to complete
$jobs | Wait-Job

     

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