This document discusses AWS Lambda, a serverless computing platform that allows users to execute code without provisioning or managing servers. It describes Lambda's core functions, pricing model, and how it can be used to build event-driven applications that respond to triggers from other AWS services like S3, DynamoDB and Kinesis. Example usage patterns are provided, including pushing code execution from an S3 bucket upload and pulling from streams in Kinesis or DynamoDB. The document predicts that serverless platforms like Lambda will drive a "post-server era" in cloud computing over the next year.

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Visual Commerce
GONE IN 60 SECONDS
Lambda: The ‘Nicholas Cage’ of AWS

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WHO I AM
• Site Reliability
Engineer at Invodo
• In the process of
implementing a CI /
CD workflow with
duck-tape, Jenkins,
Nexus, JIRA,
GitHub, and
Lagavullin.

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NICHOLAS CAGE
• Nephew of Francis
Ford Coppola.
• His last name is a
tribute to a comic
book character.
• First film was Fast
Times at Ridgemont
High.
• Won an Academy
Award for Leaving
Los Vegas.
• Greatest actor of the
20th Century.

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AWS LAMBDA
• Nephew of Docker /
containers.
• Name refers an
anonymous function.
• First appearance was
AWS Re:Invent 2014.
• Won over many early
adopters like Netflix.
• ‘Coolest shit in the
world’ according to
Werner Vogels.

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TIME TO GET SERIOUS

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• Server-independent code; somewhere
between IaaS and PaaS.
• You assign:
o Memory available to the function.
o Set a timeout value that the function will be given.
o *CPU scales with memory according to an AWS
engineer.
• Lambda functions are written in JavaScript;
future updates will support more languages
(compiled AND interpreted).
WHAT IS LAMBDA?

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• AWS Events trigger function execution.
• Three event types are supported in either a
PUSH or PULL model:
o PUSH: S3 events trigger a Lambda process.
o PULL: Lambda polls Kinesis.
o PULL: Lambda polls DynamoDB event streams.
• Uses some type of Container to create new
instances of the function which can persist
between executions.
WHAT IS LAMBDA? (CONT’D)

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• Containers can:
o Shell out to the operating system (Amazon Linux
AMI, a fork of CEntOS).
o Be uploaded as a compressed package of files.
o Reference locally packaged libraries.
o Reference locally packaged binaries.
WHAT IS LAMBDA? (CONT’D)

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• Limits:
o Maximum RAM: 1024 MB.
o Maximum Timeout: 60 seconds.
o Disk space allocated: 512 MB.
• Pricing:
o Requests: first 1M are free, $0.20 / 1M thereafter.
o Charges per 100ms based on time usage, e.g.
256MB is $0.000000417 per month.
LAMBDA LIMITS AND PRICING

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ROLES

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INVOCATION ROLE
• Used to start
Lambda function
execution.
• Has to have
permission to
execute Lambda,
that’s about it.

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EXECUTION ROLE
• Permissions given
to the Lambda
function during
execution.
• If it needs to read /
write to other AWS
resources add these
to the policy.

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EXAMPLE MODELS

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PUSH EXECUTION: S3
• A new object is
placed in an S3
bucket.
• The bucket triggers
a Lambda event
based on the event
type (PUT, POST,
Copy,
CompleteMultiPartU
pload).

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• When the event is fired a timer begins.
o If the function exits BEFORE the timer (based on
timeout) expires nothing happens.
o If the function FAILS TO EXIT before the timer, the
event could be fired again, leading to multi-delivery.
• Beware of recursion:
o Place a file in a bucket.
o Do something to the file, modifying it.
o Fire another event because we modified a file.
NOTES ABOUT PUSH EXECTION

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PULL EXECUTION: KINESIS
• Lambda polls a Kinesis stream for events.
• The Invocation Role must have access to
the stream.
• The Execution Role then takes over.

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PULL EXECUTION: DYNAMODB
• DynamoDB, k/v NoSQL database.
• Puts, updates, deletes are written to an
event stream.
• Lambda then executes based on the event.

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LET’S ROLL

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CREATING A LAMBDA
Name of function
Upload or use
a single file
Handler is the
Function name
Execution role

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• Lambda functions begin with the handler
declaration:
o exports.handler = function(event, context) {
• Lambda functions end with the context.done
function:
o context.done(null,'end');
• You have up to 60 seconds to return the
context.done.
STARTING AND ENDING LAMBDA

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• All demo code can be found here:
• https://github.com/invodo/lambda_demo
DEMO TIME

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• Lambda is being used at AWS, Netflix, and
other companies as a replacement for
micro-services.
• The future (6 – 12 months) will see rapid
evolution in this space.
• My prediction: 2015 will be the start of the
‘post-server era’ in cloud computing.
CLOSING

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• Netflix CPO Talk on Lambda:
http://aws.amazon.com/solutions/case-
studies/netflix-and-aws-lambda/
• HN Comment Thread on Lambda:
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8602936
• Lambda Pricing Page:
http://aws.amazon.com/lambda/pricing/
• DyamoDB Streams:
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/dynamodb-
streams-preview/
• Building Reactive Apps with Lambda:
https://www.airpair.com/lambda/posts/aws-
lambda-stream-processing
RESOURCES