Serverless is a new technology that is significantly changing the way services are provided and deployed. With serverless, you no longer have to agonize about servers and hardware maintenance. You get peace of mind that your infrastructure is running in the cloud, and tools like AWS Lambda make it easy and cheap to create new code as well.
What does this mean for businesses? Businesses should be looking at using serverless solutions because they now have more time to run their business and think of new ideas. With serverless, companies can decrease costs and increase efficiency with their tech stack by eliminating the need for managing servers. It offers businesses fast scalability, ease of use, and cost savings.
What is serverless technology?
Serverless refers to the concept of running a function that does not rely on a server. Although there are different serverless instances, it generally refers to using containers to run code without worrying about the underlying infrastructure. The popularity of containers has caused a whole ecosystem around them, and it is quickly becoming one of the biggest technological trends in tech today.
Serverless platforms such as AWS Lambda and Azure Functions provide end-users with various functions that they can interact with programmatically via APIs. These platforms allow the client to set up rules for how these functions operate and execute them on the serverless platform without the required maintenance.
The popularity of serverless technology was traditionally attributed to significant, mission-critical problems such as building machine learning models, event-based data processing, and web scraping for data mining.
Serverless also provides nearly instant scale when needed and allows businesses to dynamically manage and scale their resources without providing a new server. It is a massive benefit for time-sensitive companies such as e-commerce sites that need to scale quickly, and without having to pay for resources, they will not use
Not just this, let’s now have a quick look at some other benefits of this amazing technology.
Benefits of Serverless Technology
- Enhanced Customer Experience
Serverless also helps when businesses look to improve customer satisfaction because of the decreased time it takes to develop new features. Many serverless solutions offer a managed experience where the developer does not have to worry about setting up servers and writing code. Even though it takes time to develop features, the overall time spent can be significantly reduced. - Mobile-First Approach
Serverless also provides businesses with a mobile-first application experience because mobile applications are now the default for most people. By taking advantage of serverless, companies no longer have to worry about setting up and managing cloud infrastructure for their business. It allows them to focus on improving their product and adding more features without worrying about the backend systems or environment they are using. - Accessibility
One of the best things about serverless is that it is accessible for many businesses. Many of the business’s clients, such as startups, are using serverless solutions on their websites. It is great because it means there will be a lot of background knowledge already available for businesses to learn from when looking for answers and tools to use. Serverless also helps when companies are looking to buy into different technologies because it allows them to take advantage of features without committing to resources they will not use. It is also great for small businesses that are looking to experiment with currently popular service offerings. For example, Slack has integrated its service with AWS Lambda and allows users to search for Slack from within the AWS application using the search box next to the magnifying glass. - Increased Consistency
Another benefit of serverless is that it helps to add consistency across applications. Their applications can use the same backend for different purposes without bothering how each one is used. This means that many of their companies will instantly scale and grow their applications without worrying about how to provision infrastructure. Even though serverless is still nascent, many businesses are already taking advantage of the available options. It will only escalate as an increased number of providers offer solutions for developers. For example, over 400,000 developers currently use AWS Lambda each month, and over 36 million developers have opted for AWS services since 2016. - Cost & Time Efficient
With serverless, businesses can also save costs from unutilized hardware and improve the overall efficiency of their infrastructure. Many serverless solutions are pay-as-you-go, meaning that they do not require you to set up VMs or servers beforehand. Instead, they operate on an on-demand basis, so you only pay for what you use. Also, serverless solutions do not require deploying; the system also enables businesses to save time. - Scalability
The scalability of serverless solutions is also a business benefit. It is because, with serverless solutions, you can scale up your infrastructure by just adding more servers when needed. These solutions are also very cost-effective, meaning businesses do not have to spend much money running their technology. - Auditability
The other benefit of serverless is that it offers auditability. As these solutions are on-demand, businesses can see what resources are being utilized and when. They can also monitor their costs better as they can see their spending pattern based on analytics. The companies don’t have to worry about paying for resources that they do not use, such as servers that have been idle or only used once a day. They also no longer have to put in the effort and cost of setting up VMs or servers if they need them. It also allows businesses to prioritize their expenses and scale up when needed. This way, companies can save more money on costs from unutilized resources and increase the efficiency of their infrastructure.
Top 3 Serverless Platforms in 2021
AWS: Serverless platforms play an essential role in today’s serverless architecture. As of now, AWS Lambda is the most popular serverless platform as of 14 January 2019. It provides continuous integration and is highly scalable. It lets you focus on your code and not worry about servers as AWS takes care of everything.
GCP: Google Cloud Functions allows you to write code without worrying about the infrastructure. They also make it easy for you to create and use APIs and tools such as machine learning, storage, and BigQuery. It also integrates with other GCP services as well as third-party services.
Microsoft Azure: Azure Functions is another cloud platform that allows you to use serverless architecture and cloud-ready APIs. It is very flexible as it supports many different programming languages and open APIs. It also integrates with third-party services.
Conclusion
Achieving all these benefits is why serverless solutions are a win for any business as they help improve operations by decreasing downtime and increasing overall efficiency, saving them time and money in the process. As more and more enterprises adopt serverless, the need for an open standard becomes more important.
In this article, we have seen why serverless will be a big player in the future. It is something very early adopters of the technology are embracing and will continue to grow as many organizations look to take advantage of its benefits.
Further, if you need any help migrating your operations to the cloud and serverless platforms, we at Bitcot are ready to help you. We work and provide services in different tech domains, and we are a team of experts on the cloud, serverless, and enterprise mobility. Feel free to get in touch with us if you need assistance.
