How Serverless Computing Has Changed the Cloud Landscape
With serverless computing, the cloud provider handles all routine infrastructure administration and maintenance.
The serverless computing cloud architecture provides organizations with on-demand access to the required resources. Customers pay only for the resources that they consume. When an application is not in use, it does not receive any allocated resources.
In a serverless computing architecture, the cloud provider manages the execution of a server’s code. Therefore, the provider’s customers do not need to develop and deploy the infrastructure required to operate applications and programs traditionally. The primary goal of serverless computing is to make it simpler for software developers to write code that is intended to operate on cloud platforms and fulfill a clearly defined function.
The term “serverless” is misleading because organizations still require servers to provide services and resources. However, these servers are hosted and managed by vendors, allowing developers to focus on coding without worrying about server management.
Serverless computing vs other cloud computing: What makes it different?
Cloud deployment types address the location of cloud servers and who administers them. In contrast to FaaS (serverless), in which cloud providers manage and provision the necessary resources and developers do not interact with the servers, IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS each involve a separate party managing the servers.
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is the leasing of IT infrastructure from a cloud provider, including storage, operating systems, networks, servers, and virtual workstations.
- With Platform as a Service (PaaS), the provider is responsible for software maintenance, resource procurement, and management of the underlying infrastructure of storage, databases, and servers. It enables organizations to concentrate on application development, testing, deployment, and management.
- FaaS (Functions as a Service) liberates the business from many of the remaining infrastructure administrative responsibilities of PaaS.
- Software as a Service (SaaS): With SaaS, the cloud provider runs and manages the product, ensuring that the subscriber is not required to manage or sustain the service or infrastructure. A business subscribes to a software application that it can access via the internet through SaaS, which functions fundamentally as a rental agreement.
Advantages of serverless computing
Lower costs
As traditional cloud providers of backend services (server allocation) frequently charge users for unused space or dormant CPU time, serverless computing is generally quite cost-effective.
Simplified scalability
Developers utilizing serverless architecture need not be concerned with scaling policies. The serverless computing service provider manages all scaling on demand.
Simplified backend code
With FaaS (Function-as-a-Service), developers are able to construct simple functions with a single purpose, such as calling an API.
Quicker turnaround
The use of serverless computing architecture can drastically reduce time to market. Rather than requiring a complex deploy process to send out bug fixes and new features, dedicated development teams can add and modify code independently.
Disadvantages of serverless computing
Vendor lock-in
Switching cloud providers may be difficult because the way serverless computing services are delivered varies by vendor.
Inefficient for long-running apps
Occasionally, using long-running tasks can be more expensive than operating a workload on a virtual machine or dedicated server.
Latency
Often referred to as a cold start, there is a delay when a scalable serverless platform handles a function for the first time.
More difficult debugging
As a serverless instance creates a new instance of itself each time it starts up, it is difficult to collect the data required to diagnose and repair a serverless function.
Serverless computing examples
Here are 3 examples of serverless computing:
iRobot
In 1990, roboticists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology founded iRobot. The company offers robots with domestic and commercial applications.
In a single day in 2015, iRobot sold 14,000 Roomba autonomous vacuums. This occasion occurred during the Amazon Prime Day sale. The company acquired its reputation for innovation immediately after the event.
In the same year, however, they confronted their first obstacle when they had to release their first internet-connected Roomba vacuums.
Therefore, they opt for Amazon Web Services (AWS). AWS provides various combinations of scalability and global accessibility in this section. However, iRobot’s serverless architecture, which is based on AES IoT and AWS Lamda, is the most convincing.
iRobot saved a ton of money because they no longer needed to bother about physical server space and maintenance.
They effectively maintained the project’s budget, and most importantly, the new application requires no more than ten resources to run.
FINRA
In the United States, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is a private organization. The mission of this organization is to safeguard investors and market integrity.
In 2016, FINRA decided to audit trading practices, including quotations, trade events, stocks, and equity securities. Therefore, they utilized Order Audit Trail System (OATS) to collect various market data in order to construct a proper life cycle for each order (buying and selling of stocks, bonds, and equities, among other activities), beginning with the individual and progressing to the organization.
They receive an enormous amount of data daily because it originates from numerous exchanges across the country. During periods of increased trading volume, however, they receive data twice or even three times as often as on normal days.
To manage this circumstance, they select the optimal solution for hosting OATS on a third-party cloud provider. For this, they conducted a comprehensive analysis of the available market solutions. To satisfy FINRA requirements, three proofs of concept were developed to evaluate the scenario. However, they opt for AWS Lambda.
Using AWS Lambda, they increased their cost-effectiveness, and most significantly, they only paid for the resources they consumed. In addition, they are no longer required to maintain server infrastructure on-premises.
Soar
Soar is an Australian startup that has revolutionized the geospatial industry by combining satellite and drone imagery with blockchain technology.
Globally, soar mapping technology is used for a variety of purposes, including disaster assessment and urban planning. Their unique aerial imagery is applicable to both the public and private sectors.
To achieve their objective of becoming the ultimate mapping platform, they require a world-class solution. Therefore, Soar chooses Alibaba Cloud services, which could provide them with all the required mapping content types.
In addition, Soar is highly persuaded by Alibaba’s road map in which they integrate AI with their cloud services.
Since the project’s inception, Soar has utilized function compute, table store, and storage from Alibaba’s cloud services, which facilitate their day-to-day operations. The initial outcome of the services was excellent.
The future of serverless computing: What is next?
The prevalence of serverless computing will increase as cloud services proliferate. More individuals are utilizing cloud computing than ever before, and this trend will continue. Cloud computing is appropriate in certain circumstances, but not all.
In order for cloud implementation to be successful, you must comprehend its underlying technology in order to make informed judgments regarding which workloads are best suited for it.
In the same way that we use our developers’ skillsets selectively based on their expertise levels and areas of interest/experience (and depending on whether they’re working with us or someone else), we should view this new technology as having its own advantages and disadvantages. Just because everyone has adopted it does not mean that it is perfect.
While serverless computing is still in its early phases of adoption, it is likely that this trend will gain momentum as cloud-based services become more popular, similar to how cell phones evolved from cumbersome devices to sleek, multifunctional devices.
Sum up
Serverless computing will alter the cloud environment in numerous ways. It will simplify application deployment and management, enable applications to scale more quickly and efficiently than ever before, and allow software development companies to concentrate on what they do best: creating excellent software! The reality is that serverless computing has already gained traction, even if its use is currently limited.
However, once it becomes more widely adopted by businesses seeking to migrate to the cloud, developers and business users will have a vast selection of serverless services from which to choose. The repercussions are dramatic, and we are still observing their development. One takeaway from this is that the cloud universe is very distinct from the world we live in today, and that it will continue to change in unpredictable ways. However, there are steps we can take now to prepare for future changes.
