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Book Description

Although the cloud has revolutionized the way we manage applications, many companies still view their systems in terms of servers—even though they no longer work with physical servers. What if you take the concept of servers out of the equation and begin to think of cloud-based applications as workflow, distributed logic, and externally managed data stores? This report examines the new Serverless approach to operations, including its considerable benefits and notable limitations.

Authors Mike Roberts and John Chapin, co-founders of the Symphonia Serverless and cloud technology consultancy, take you through the Serverless landscape—particularly the design considerations, tooling, and approaches to operational management you need to make it work. Is Serverless the right choice for you and your team? Dive into this report and find out.

  • Learn two major aspects of Serverless: Backend-as-a-Service and Functions-as-a-Service
  • Compare Serverless application architecture with legacy non-server architecture
  • Explore Serverless architecture’s five major benefits
  • Understand Serverless limitations, including the drawbacks of working with the cloud
  • Learn which vendor technologies are definitely, mostly, somewhat, and not-quite Serverless
  • Take a peek into the future of Serverless

Table of Contents

  1. Preface
  2. 1. Introducing Serverless
    1. Setting the Stage
      1. The Birth of the Cloud
      2. Infrastructural Outsourcing
      3. The Cloud Grows
      4. Enter Serverless, Stage Right
    2. Defining Serverless
      1. Backend as a Service
      2. Functions as a Service/Serverless Compute
      3. The Common Theme of Serverless
    3. An Evolution, with a Jolt
  3. 2. What Do Serverless Applications Look Like?
    1. A Reference Application
      1. Non-Serverless Architecture
      2. Why Change?
      3. How to Change?
      4. The Serverless Architecture
      5. What Got Better?
  4. 3. Benefits of Serverless
    1. Reduced Labor Cost
    2. Reduced Risk
    3. Reduced Resource Cost
    4. Increased Flexibility of Scaling
    5. Shorter Lead Time
  5. 4. Limitations of Serverless
    1. Inherent Limitations
      1. State
      2. Latency
      3. Local Testing
      4. Loss of Control
    2. Implementation Limitations
      1. Cold Starts
      2. Tooling Limitations
      3. Vendor Lock-In
      4. Immaturity of Services
    3. Conclusion
  6. 5. Differentiating Serverless
    1. The Key Traits of Serverless
    2. Is It Serverless?
      1. Unambiguously Serverless Technologies
      2. Less Obvious Serverless Technologies
      3. Substantially Serverless Technologies
      4. The Worthy Mentions, but Not Quite Serverless
    3. Is PaaS Serverless?
    4. Is CaaS Serverless?
  7. 6. Looking to the Future
    1. Predictions
    2. Conclusion