In the Administering Windows Server Hybrid Core Infrastructure objectives for automating management of Windows Server IaaS VMs, Microsoft specifies that runbooks reside in and are executed from an Azure Automation account. The Automation account is the management boundary that contains your runbooks, modules (Az PowerShell), credentials/variables, schedules, and identities. The guide explains that before you can create or publish a PowerShell or PowerShel l 7 runbook, an Automation account must exist in the target subscription and region . After the account is created, you author the runbook, import any required Az modules, and grant permissions (commonly through the Automation account's managed identity) so the runbook can manage resources such as an Azure VM (VM1). While a Log Analytics workspace can be linked for job logs and update management, it is not required to create the runbook itself. Likewise, Power Automate is a separate service for workflow orchestration and Azure Workbooks are for monitoring/visualization; neither is the container for runbooks. Therefore, the first prerequisite to manage VM1 with a PowerShell runbook is to create an Azure Automation account, and then create the runbook within that account, assign permissions, and schedule or start it as needed.