Why Serverless Computing Matters for All of Your Enterprise Solutions

You may have heard your IT team talking about serverless computing or function as a service (FaaS) options, and it makes sense; 46 percent of IT decision makers are using and evaluating serverless systems, and it’s the fastest-growing cloud service model, which means there’s a chance your IT team is considering making the switch.

What does “serverless” computing mean? Here’s what you need to know about serverless solutions and why we think they’re such a stellar option.

What Does Serverless Computing Mean?

Serverless computing is a cloud-based service or platform. Before serverless, cloud-based systems were an option, enterprises had to rely on an expensive physical server that requires a lot of managing, plus an operating system and web server hostings.

With serverless solutions, there’s no operating system needed, and code is run only as needed, which conserves resources. All you have to develop are the individual functions and the code itself. Your host service handles the physical hardware and maintenance so you can focus on more important things. Your developers never have to worry about the servers at all.

In truth, “serverless” doesn’t mean that there’s no server. It just means that it’s someone else’s server. You don’t have to manage a server because it’s already done for you. You’re breaking your server up into smaller portions and using a cloud platform to host various aspects of code you would need a server for.

Function as a Service

Something to note? “FaaS” is often used interchangeably with the term “serverless,” but FaaS refers to running individual code functions. Your IT team already may have implemented some FaaS systems. Where a serverless system differs is that it has the power to run your entire application as a series of services.

Terraform

Terraform is an open-source tool that allows you to automate your infrastructure, platform and services. A great metaphor for terraform would be rather than looking up directions and driving to a destination yourself, terraform is the system equivalent of calling a taxi and letting the driver get you where you need to go. It does what you need it to do without you having to worry about why or how.

How Can You Benefit from Serverless Systems?

Flexible Deployment Options

Some are concerned that with a serverless solution, they won’t have the control they want over the server or they can’t deploy it where they want. However, Terraform and serverless options are highly flexible. In fact, any cloud provider you choose is fine to use, and there’s no commitment to stick with the same provider.

Also, if you need additional security, you even can use a private cloud. At Cantle Tech, we’ve configured solutions for on-premises deployment for clients who need a safer option for security purposes. We’ve even worked on off-shore oil sensor platforms where stations were physically separated. Each server had to be deployed on site to get data to reach the cloud solution. With this internet of things (IoT) solution, we’ve discovered that we can find a deployment option for even the most complicated of circumstances.

Other Benefits

What are some other reasons that serverless and Terraform solutions are being adopted at such a fast rate?

It takes less time to get your enterprise solution to the market. APIs can be created in hours and days instead of weeks or months. Full enterprise programs can be accomplished in remarkably less time.

The infrastructure of serverless solutions makes them incredibly scalable. Planning for or creating additional infrastructure “just in case” is a risky investment, but with a serverless system you can safely scale with ease. One online training program was able to scale to 40,000 users in six months without a single server.

Because of the money you save with cloud computing and reduced manpower, serverless systems are incredibly low cost. You don’t have to pay to create a new program to add new services, manage infrastructure or invest in new servers. Without servers, gone are the days of having to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for server systems.

You have more time to perfect the user experience. With no infrastructure to build, you can focus on how users will interact with your solutions. After all, they don’t care about the infrastructure—they care about their experience using the system.

In a global economy, you may have users all over the world. If you use servers, they have to connect to them, which can cause latencies. Serverless servers mean that your solutions work exceptionally well for everyone no matter their location.

With Cantle Tech, Serverless Systems Are for More Than Just APIs

Many serverless system hosts give you the option to create serverless APIs and interfaces (UIs) because applications are serverless now too. How does this benefit you? We can build solutions to problems for you by creating microservices without any overhead or heavy application. All you have is a function that does its job.

What is a microservice? It’s a self-contained process that provides a unique capability. You probably interact with microservices every day. Think of your favorite large online retailer. They use microservices for all kinds of things: authenticating credit cards, recommending products based on your search history or creating a wish list.

With serverless microservices, your solutions aren’t organized around software layers—you just have functions. This helps your team focus on solving problems and creating exceptional user experiences, not on solving code or building an all-new infrastructure. After all, you don’t want to worry about all of the nitty-gritty details, you just need your solutions to work. Serverless solutions help you do this with speed and efficiency.

Cantle Tech has experience building these kinds of solutions for our clients, and we want to help you. We’ve helped government organizations like this one build a serverless framework to reduce the cost of their enterprise and the cost of the changeover to create a usable, scalable application in record time. Not only did a serverless system allow us to do this on time and on budget, but we created a functional application that met all of our clients’ needs after another developer quit and said it couldn’t be done.

We also created a brand-new app for Global Wizard to revolutionize the global trade industry. The serverless system eliminated scalability issues with a sleek, lightweight application. The user interface and indeed the whole tech stack were built as a system of services to make the whole enterprise solution flexible, reliable and affordable.

Is it time for you to ditch the servers and enjoy the perks of streamlined, deployable enterprise solutions? Whatever services you need, we can help you develop the serverless solutions to provide an affordable, lightweight tech stack and a scalable system.

Maybe it’s time we talk. Contact us today to learn more about how we can remove the constraints of a server with an easy-to-maintain system.