Serverless Deployment: Everything You Need to Know

Are you considering a switch from traditional to serverless deployment? At our team, we know how pivotal this decision is for your app’s future. Count on our profound serverless experience to deploy your project smoothly.

Serverless deployment, a notable shift from traditional models, works on a simple principle. Your code is ready to go, but you can only execute it on demand. You don’t manage servers and infrastructure — that’s what your cloud provider does. Plus, you pay solely for the resources you use.

If that still sounds like rocket science, keep reading this post. We’ll explore serverless deployment in greater detail, covering the essential concepts, components, and workflows coming with this solution.

With serverless deployment, you can develop and deploy your apps without building and maintaining your infrastructure. Despite the misleading name, this deployment model does use servers. The catch is that third-party vendors provide them. Discover more insights into this approach by reviewing its core concepts:

Serverless Architecture Overview

Serverless architecture consists of two core parts: function as a service (FaaS) and backend as a service (BaaS).

• FaaS: In this model, developers write separate functions solving specific tasks. The functions execute in response to various events, from HTTP requests to changes in serverless databases. They deactivate once their task is complete.
• BaaS: In this approach, developers delegate their backend processes to a third-party vendor. Thus, remote servers implement and store the app’s backend.

Owing to serverless architecture, devs can concentrate solely on writing code without worrying about infrastructure and server management.

Why opt for a serverless deployment method? The following are just several advantages this approach brings.

• Cost-effectiveness: Pay only for the computing resources used without substantial infrastructure investments.
• Scalability: Scale your apps automatically following your current workloads and needs.
• Simple deployment: Focus on writing code and deploy your apps through third-party providers.
• Faster development: Build your apps without dealing with infrastructure management.
• Easier maintenance: Roll out updates and improvements of your code without remaking the entire application.

Now that you know the serverless deployment basics, let’s see this approach in action. It takes several essential stages:

1. Code deployment: Developers upload their code repository to a serverless deployment platform. This code defines specific functions and their triggers – anything from a user clicking a button to an HTTP request.
2. Event triggering: An event like a user’s click triggers the specific function’s activation.
3. Resource allocation: The serverless platform automatically provides the computing resources necessary for executing the function.
4. Function execution: At this point, the function runs and completes its designated task.
5. Resource release: After completing the task, the platform releases resources. Then, the function deactivates.

It’s also critical to understand several components that make this process as smooth as possible:

• Serverless platform is a third-party cloud provider that manages the infrastructure like AWS, AWS SAM, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud.
• Functions execute specific tasks. For instance, these are AWS Lambda, Azure Functions, and Cloud Functions.

Find out more in our post Migrating from Azure to AWS.

AWS serverless deployment suits various use cases, offering scalability, cost-effectiveness, and straightforward development. Let’s explore several examples:

• CI/CD systems: Combine serverless deployment with your CI/CD pipelines to speed up development cycles. Develop, test, integrate, and deploy apps with ease.
• Real-time processing: Use serverless deployment methods for critical instances of swift data processing. Benefit from event-driven architecture.
• IoT: Configure your functions to analyze sensor and IoT device data and trigger alerts. Execute specific actions like turning on the lights or opening the door following the received data.
• Web or mobile app backend: Use serverless BaaS to handle the backend operations of your applications. Let your developers focus on frontend and functionality development.
• eCommerce checkout: Leverage serverless to scale the checkout processes on demand, especially during peak times.
• Microservices: Use serverless architecture to implement each microservice as a separate function.

You can also leverage serverless deployment for task automation when required. Schedule the functions to run at specific intervals. They will tackle routine processes like regular data backups.

Deploying serverless infrastructure involves more than just learning about this solution’s components and workflows. You’ll also need to implement specific strategies to simplify the deployment process.

Limit Access

Restrict access permissions to the minimum necessary for each function, app, and service. If you use overly permissive roles, you’ll likely put your customer and business data at risk. Implementing authentication mechanisms is also a good idea.

Ensure Sensitive Data Protection

Keep your API keys, credentials, and other sensitive data in secure storage. Leverage your cloud provider’s encryption services and limit the number of users and apps accessing confidential information.

Establish Deployment Windows

While serverless deployment offers instant and automatic updates, consider limiting them during prime times. For example, scheduling deployments during non-peak hours minimizes the negative impact on user experience.

Name Functions Clearly

Provide a straightforward name for each function. It’s especially critical when their number within your app grows. Use descriptive and consistent naming to understand each function’s purpose and streamline deployment.

Apart from learning how to deploy a Serverless Framework, preparing for the challenges along the way is critical. But don’t worry – we’re here to advise on a comprehensive strategy to overcome those limitations.

Common Challenges

Let’s explore the pros and cons of serverless, focusing on the typical challenges:

• Cold start: The cold start happens when the event invokes the function for the first time after a certain period of inactivity. As a result, your app’s users may experience latency.
• Third-party provider dependence: When you opt for serverless deployment, you entrust your app’s performance to the cloud vendor. If your provider faces difficulties, they may affect your application, too.
• Limited debugging options: Since you cannot access the infrastructure, you only have several debugging options provided by your vendor.
• Vendor lock-in: Going serverless often leaves you reliant on a specific cloud provider. While operating within a single ecosystem is easy, you may lack tools and integrations.
• Resource limits: Some serverless platforms set resource limits on functions like maximum execution time and memory allocation. If your function surpasses these boundaries, it may interrupt.

Optimization Strategies

Despite the potential challenges, there are effective strategies to deal with them. Here are several approaches you can adopt:

• Optimize function size: Remove unnecessary code and dependencies. This way, your function will deploy faster with minimum latency.
• Use resources wisely: Monitor resource usage and adjust function configurations accordingly. Consider breaking down complex functions into smaller ones.
• Leverage auto-scaling: Opt for automated scaling features provided by serverless platforms to invoke functions when required.
• Load testing: Handle load tests to determine performance bottlenecks and improve your app based on test results.
• Local testing: Use logging, debugging tools, and local testing environments to tackle debugging issues.

Having successfully delivered over 220 projects, our experts at Serverless are ready to facilitate your processes as well. Backed up by ten years of experience, we know all the benefits, challenges, and strategies necessary for effective deployment.

We are AWS-certified professionals with an in-depth understanding of various cloud platforms. Our team offers transparent communication, flexible processes, reusable code, and future-proof solutions.

We can consult you on Serverless Framework deployment or take over this process ourselves. Look at what we did for our client – a famous hosting provider, GoDaddy. The company needed a faster and more scalable solution than its current one — the Google Cloud Platform. We suggested migrating to AWS, ultimately minimizing downtime for GoDaddy’s services.

This project is just one example of our serverless solutions. You can find more in our portfolio.

Serverless deployment is the next generation that went far beyond traditional infrastructures. It offers flexibility, scalability, and efficient resource allocation. Moreover, it streamlines the development and launch of your apps.

Are you willing to adopt this approach for your project? Partner with us to leverage the full potential of serverless deployment. Just contact our team and pave your way to effective development.