Written by Pete Nystrom
Buzzword: Serverless Computing
The most trending technology buzzword in 2023 is undoubtedly “serverless.” While some consider the term synonymous with cloud computing in general, this article will focus on the core principle of serverless, which is the Function as a Service (FaaS) model. FaaS has made it increasingly easier for companies to begin cloud transformation and has arguably made the biggest impact on cloud computing in many years. It gives developers the ability to deploy application logic as on-demand, event-driven functions which do not incur charges unless being utilized, which is one of the most important principles of cloud computing. FaaS offers companies a way to implement and deploy complex backend services without provisioning any compute infrastructure and allows developers to focus on what they should be doing, which is building great software without having to think about the run environment.
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Wading into the Cloud
While the benefits of serverless cloud computing have become obvious over the past 10 years, implementing a successful cloud migration strategy is not as straightforward. It takes a significant amount of time, effort and money to refactor applications and determine how best to shift operations to a new way of hosting your services. To ease this burden, many companies are using an incremental approach which allows them to prioritize high-cost logic, which can yield the largest ROI, to migrate. Transitioning parts of your system to an event-driven, serverless architecture is one of the best ways to improve your application and begin your full cloud transformation.
The main reason serverless FaaS allows for an easy, incremental migration is that you can prioritize high-cost functionality to move with as little as one function. As more and more of your application logic is moved you essentially create the building blocks for your microservice architecture as well. Moving one function at a time is most definitely not the best approach, but I want to highlight how easy it is to start benefiting from the cloud using FaaS.
The Big Kids on the Block
Serverless gained a lot of traction and recognition with the advent of AWS Lambda in 2014, with Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Functions (GCF) not far behind. Being first to the market allowed Amazon’s solution to gain a lot of attention and traction in the few years before it saw much competition and it continues to be the most used FaaS offering. As we approach 2023, each of the services are very similar with only minor differences between them.
At Seamgen, we have built solutions on each of the platforms and don’t think the differences are large enough to move providers if you already host any services at either of them. If, however, you are just beginning your cloud journey, we have found that Azure Functions continues to improve upon the direction AWS began and is currently the premier solution in the serverless computing world. From cheaper services to code sharing, remote debugging to the flexible triggers and bindings framework, it truly provides the most efficient and effective serverless computing on the market. Combined with an expert managed service provider that amplifies your business objectives and cloud computing goals, Azure can transform your business operations, cost optimization, and technological stance in the market. With Azure Functions, it’s extremely easy to begin your journey to the cloud with the most flexible and cost-effective solutions on the market.
“Azure Functions is a serverless solution that allows you to write less code, maintain less infrastructure, and save on costs. Instead of worrying about deploying and maintaining servers, the cloud infrastructure provides all the up-to-date resources needed to keep your applications running. You focus on the code that matters most to you, in the most productive language for you, and Azure Functions handles the rest.” - Microsoft, Introduction to Azure Functions
Ready to begin your journey to the cloud? Seamgen’s Cloud Computing Team is the managed service provider for you. Contact us today for custom Azure Serverless Computing!
