AWS Lambda: A Straightforward Guide For Beginners

What is Serverless Computing Service?

Traditional approach, your infrastructure may include a dedicated computer with its own hardware components like CPU, RAM, storage (hard drives, SSDs), network interface cards, operating system (like Windows Server or Linux), and various software applications depending on its purpose (web server, database server, email server, etc.).

You or your IT team is responsible for managing the server, including installation, configuration, maintenance, security updates, and scaling resources.

Serverless computing, the name itself is indicative, eliminates the server setup and management part; the service provider takes care of this. In the case of AWS Lambda, AWS will take care of the server management, eliminating the need to set up hardware and software for the end user.

AWS Lambda is serverless, compute service. It means to run this service, you need not set up a server and infrastructure setup. AWS manages the underlying hardware, networking, and virtualization layer, freeing you from those complexities.

Why is it popular? 

1. It allows developers to focus on writing code. 

2. Major vendors provide a pay-as-you-go model, which means you are only charged based on your usage. Therefore, it proves to be cost-effective if used properly. 

3. The compute system incorporates auto-scaling, meaning it scales as per your needs. As your needs grow, the vendor automatically adds more resources. 

You might not have an idea what the AWS Lambda service is. 

What is AWS Lambda?

AWS Lambda is an event-driven, serverless compute service by AWS. The “compute service” includes everything an end-user may need to run a service, such as processing power, storage, hardware, networking, memory, and other resources.

Let’s understand AWS Lambda in simple words. 

Let’s say, you plan to develop a weather forecasting website. Traditionally, you would need physical servers with enough processing power (CPUs), memory (RAM), and storage to handle tasks like weather data analysis and model simulations.

This includes installing software, applying security updates, and ensuring smooth operation. As your user base grows, you might need to buy additional servers to handle the increased workload.

The compute service abstracts away the task of server management and provides you with virtual servers with varying configurations of CPU, RAM, and storage. 

You write and deploy your code, and AWS Lambda handles provisioning the resources (server, memory, storage) needed to run your code, scaling them automatically based on usage.

In other words, it provides a virtual execution environment with sufficient processing power, memory, and temporary storage to run your code. 

We have mentioned an event-driven term that means this service only triggers when a specific event occurs. For example, you upload a file, make an api call, add a record to the database, or press a button in an app. The event-driven nature means the service doesn't run 24/7. Ultimately, it saves cost and resources.

AWS Lambda Function

AWS Lambda function is a code that you write/upload to Lambda. Once you upload your source code file to AWS Lambda in the form of a ZIP file, it automatically executes the code.

How Does AWS Lambda Work? 

Lambda function executes in response to events triggered by other AWS services or SaaS applications. When a trigger fires, Lambda allocates resources (memory, CPU) to run your function based on its configuration.

Benefits of using AWS Lambda

AWS Lambda offers a wide range of advantages that can streamline development processes and optimize costs. Here are 15 key benefits of using AWS Lambda:

1. Faster development

Lambda liberates development teams to concentrate on core functionalities, cutting out the necessity to provision and manage servers, resulting in accelerated application development and deployment.

2. Cost-effective

With Lambda's pay-per-use pricing model, users only incur charges for the resources their code consumes during runtime. This eradicates the expense of idle servers, leading to substantial savings.

3. Scalability 

Lambda autonomously adjusts its scale in response to workload fluctuations, ensuring your application can manage traffic spikes without manual interference.

4. Simplified Infrastructure Management

Lambda handles server management, patching, and scaling, enabling developers to focus solely on coding and deploying.

5. Event-driven

Lambda seamlessly integrates with event-driven architectures, activating functions based on specific events from various AWS services.

6. Microservices support

Lambda's serverless nature makes it perfect for constructing microservices-based applications, fostering modularity and independent deployments.

7. Backing diverse languages

Lambda supports an array of programming languages such as Node.js, Python, Java, Go, Ruby, and more, providing developers with flexibility.

9. Pre-configured templates

Lambda streamlines development with pre-configured templates and workflows, empowering developers to innovate and deliver projects swiftly.

10. Enhanced security

AWS manages the underlying infrastructure, upholding rigorous security standards to ensure a safe environment for your code.

11. Stateless functions

Lambda functions inherently remain stateless, simplifying development and debugging processes.

12. Third-party integrations

 Lambda integrates with AWS services and various third-party libraries and frameworks.

13. Worldwide accessibility

 Leveraging AWS's global infrastructure, Lambda functions can be deployed across multiple regions, guaranteeing minimal latency for users worldwide.

14. Detailed Monitoring 

AWS furnishes extensive monitoring capabilities for Lambda functions, allowing developers to monitor performance and detect potential issues.

15. Reduced server footprint

Lambda reduces the server footprint by eliminating the necessity for dedicated servers, contributing to environmental sustainability.

AWS Lambda can spin up new instances of your function to handle increased traffic. Lambda packages your code into a container and then executes it in a multi-tenant cluster of machines.

Limitations of AWS Lambda

Though AWS Lambda is a powerful solution, it is not always flawless. These are the limitations of AWS Lambda, which you should consider that will help you decide whether Lambda is the right choice for your project. 

1. Hard Limit

A single function can only run for a maximum of 15 minutes. This makes Lambda unsuitable for long-running processes. However, you can break down long processes into smaller ones to solve this. 

2. Memory Limit

Lambda functions have a memory limit ranging from 128 MB to 10GB. This might not be suitable for very CPU-intensive workloads.

3. Upload Limit

The limit for uploading code directly is 50 MB. However, for larger deployments, you can use Lambda Layers (up to 250 MB each) or upload code from S3.

4. Concurrency

By default, your account has a limit of 1000 concurrent executions across all functions in a region. This can be increased upon request.

Lambda functions have limited temporary storage (/tmp) that gets wiped between executions.

5. Cold Starts

Due to how Lambda works, there can be a slight delay in the first execution of a function (cold start).

6. Limited Networking

Lambda functions have limited outbound network capabilities and cannot directly access the internet.

7. Debugging Challenges

Debugging serverless functions can be trickier than traditional deployments.

Is AWS Lambda Serverless the Right Choice for You? 

Now, let's get to the point: is this service right for you?

We can understand it better with this scenario. 

Let’s say you're a major online retailer experiencing seasonal traffic spikes. During peak holiday periods like Black Friday, millions of customers would visit your website to browse and purchase items. 

This would create a dramatic increase in your computing needs as servers handle product searches, shopping cart updates, and order processing. Traditionally, you'd need to purchase additional server capacity upfront to ensure smooth operation during these peak times. 

However, this approach has drawbacks:

First, if your website experiences lower traffic for most of the year, maintaining all that provisioned capacity becomes expensive since you're paying for resources you're not fully utilizing.

Second, If a surge in traffic unexpectedly surpasses your estimations, your website could crash due to insufficient resources. Scaling up additional servers on demand requires continuous monitoring, which can be a burden.

On the other hand, with a serverless architecture, you can automatically scale your infrastructure. During peak seasons, your serverless provider allocates more resources to handle the increased demand.

Once the rush subsides, resources scale down, eliminating unnecessary costs. You only pay for the resources you actually use, saving you money on idle servers during non-peak times.

However, it's not always a one-size-fits-all solution. You need to evaluate your in-house setup costs before migrating to the cloud. If you're unsure, consider contacting a professional AWS cloud consulting company. They can help you determine if this approach fits your business correctly.

Conclusion

In this guide, we have discussed AWS serverless Lambda, explored serverless computing services, and provided a detailed explanation of AWS Lambda functions. We also discussed whether Lambda Cloud is a good fit for your business needs.

If you're looking to create a virtually infinite scaling environment for developing innovative solutions, or if you're considering migrating to the cloud, feel free to reach out to us today. We offer professional services tailored to your needs.

Whether you're looking to hire dedicated AWS developers or aiming to optimize your existing environment, with a proven track record of empowering over 100 businesses globally, Brilworks is your one-stop shop for all your cloud needs. We combine innovative solutions with unparalleled expertise to help you achieve your business goals.