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  3. What the heck does "serverless" mean?

What the heck does "serverless" mean?

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  • Greg UtasG Greg Utas

    The "centralized versus distributed" debate is an ongoing source of techno-marketing hype. Mainframes gave way to workstations gave way to servers gave way to desktops gave way to the cloud.

    Robust Services Core | Software Techniques for Lemmings | Articles
    The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.

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    Jeremy Falcon
    wrote on last edited by
    #21

    Real talk. There's a time and place for both concepts IMO. Anytime peeps talk about a blanket one way for all things, is usually when it's fluff.

    Jeremy Falcon

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    • raddevusR raddevus

      Here's what it actually means -- it means having someone else manage your servers where your stuff runs... From the book, Serverless as a Game Changer: How to Get the Most Out of the Cloud[^]

      Quote:

      Serverless Means Not Our Uptime One of the simplest definitions of Serverless, and the principal way I think about fully Serverless applications, is that the responsibility for keeping applications running is not the responsibility of the organization that developed the applications.

      Yes, that's marketing -- not really technology!

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      Jeremy Falcon
      wrote on last edited by
      #22

      Technically you can use lambda functions and be "serverless". But there's no server in the traditional sense at all. I didn't read the link mind you, but if they're suggesting it's just a server on the cloud executing code then that's not accurate.

      Jeremy Falcon

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      • Richard DeemingR Richard Deeming

        Serverless computing - Wikipedia[^]:

        Serverless computing is a cloud computing execution model in which the cloud provider allocates machine resources on demand, taking care of the servers on behalf of their customers. "Serverless" is a misnomer in the sense that servers are still used by cloud service providers to execute code for developers.

        So basically, it's marketing BS. :)


        "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

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        Rick York
        wrote on last edited by
        #23

        Then what it really means is there is no dedicated server.

        "They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"

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        • H honey the codewitch

          It seems to be all the rage in web circles. I'm picturing an app that runs entirely in a browser and connects via web based APIs to do its back end processing, but that's my wild guess. How close am I? I've never gotten a clear answer out of google.

          Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

          Mike HankeyM Offline
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          Mike Hankey
          wrote on last edited by
          #24

          Smorgasbord?

          I don't think before I open my mouth, I like to be as surprised a everyone else. PartsBin an Electronics Part Organizer - Release Version 1.3.0 JaxCoder.com Latest Article: SimpleWizardUpdate

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          • H honey the codewitch

            It seems to be all the rage in web circles. I'm picturing an app that runs entirely in a browser and connects via web based APIs to do its back end processing, but that's my wild guess. How close am I? I've never gotten a clear answer out of google.

            Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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            Lost User
            wrote on last edited by
            #25

            It means: someone else's server.

            "Before entering on an understanding, I have meditated for a long time, and have foreseen what might happen. It is not genius which reveals to me suddenly, secretly, what I have to say or to do in a circumstance unexpected by other people; it is reflection, it is meditation." - Napoleon I

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            • L Lost User

              It means: someone else's server.

              "Before entering on an understanding, I have meditated for a long time, and have foreseen what might happen. It is not genius which reveals to me suddenly, secretly, what I have to say or to do in a circumstance unexpected by other people; it is reflection, it is meditation." - Napoleon I

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              honey the codewitch
              wrote on last edited by
              #26

              So now if I break into your place, hang out on your couch and channel surf, i am "homeless" :laugh: What will marketing think of next?

              Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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              • H honey the codewitch

                It seems to be all the rage in web circles. I'm picturing an app that runs entirely in a browser and connects via web based APIs to do its back end processing, but that's my wild guess. How close am I? I've never gotten a clear answer out of google.

                Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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                jschell
                wrote on last edited by
                #27

                It doesn't run in the browser. Distributed model Client - API Server - Other services (database, etc) Hardware model for the above Client PC - Business PC - Services PC Serverless Client PC - Containerized App - Services PC --------------------------------- For the standard model if your business gets busy you must increase the number of Business PC instances using some method (manual or dynamic modeled by you). Note that you can do dynamic sizing at least in AWS. For serverless (ones I have seen) the midlevel is expanded automatically on demand without any need for you to determine that (basically - naturally there are management tools.) --------------------------------- There is more overhead with starting up a new Cloud PC than with a serverless container. Myself I would not trust it cost less except for immediate surge handling. Dynamic sizing as long as there is no immediate demand would probably cost less but one must then manage the dynamic modeling which is not very easy. --------------------------------- Serveless has the problem that it is stateless. So for example if you want to cache database results you would then need yet another Services PC to do that. Additionally surges might grow so big that it overwhelms the Services level. But that can happen with the Business level also without serverless. It cannot be used for everything that you might normally put into the Business level. There are limits (at least in AWS). Again some of that might be reflected in real business needs to do it that way but could also just be poor design (but refactoring is often not an option.)

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                • raddevusR raddevus

                  It's funny that you mention "what is serverless" because I started reading the book below a few days ago. Read the 1st 3 chapters and i'm still not exactly sure. :laugh: You need to read this entire book, Serverless as a Game Changer: How to Get the Most Out of the Cloud[^] then you still won't know what it is. :rolleyes:

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                  jeron1
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #28

                  Lately, more often than not, when I see the buzzwords 'game changer', I immediately tune out.

                  "the debugger doesn't tell me anything because this code compiles just fine" - random QA comment "Facebook is where you tell lies to your friends. Twitter is where you tell the truth to strangers." - chriselst "I don't drink any more... then again, I don't drink any less." - Mike Mullikins uncle

                  raddevusR 1 Reply Last reply
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                  • J jeron1

                    Lately, more often than not, when I see the buzzwords 'game changer', I immediately tune out.

                    "the debugger doesn't tell me anything because this code compiles just fine" - random QA comment "Facebook is where you tell lies to your friends. Twitter is where you tell the truth to strangers." - chriselst "I don't drink any more... then again, I don't drink any less." - Mike Mullikins uncle

                    raddevusR Offline
                    raddevusR Offline
                    raddevus
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #29

                    jeron1 wrote:

                    when I see the buzzwords 'game changer', I immediately tune out.

                    Me too! Everything's a panacea these days...until you use it and discover it's just another layer of problems that may even take up more of your time. :rolleyes:

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                    • H honey the codewitch

                      It seems to be all the rage in web circles. I'm picturing an app that runs entirely in a browser and connects via web based APIs to do its back end processing, but that's my wild guess. How close am I? I've never gotten a clear answer out of google.

                      Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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                      TNCaver
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #30

                      I'm not sure anyone knows. Its meaning probably depends on who you ask. lol For me it means something like Azure Function apps, which are microservices/functions that execute on a server somewhere in Azure. You don't have to worry about the server, its setup or maintenance. They aren't full apps, just single-purpose functions that can receive or pass data or objects to other functions if needed. Your only concern is the code.

                      There are no solutions, only trade-offs.
                         - Thomas Sowell

                      A day can really slip by when you're deliberately avoiding what you're supposed to do.
                         - Calvin (Bill Watterson, Calvin & Hobbes)

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                      • H honey the codewitch

                        It seems to be all the rage in web circles. I'm picturing an app that runs entirely in a browser and connects via web based APIs to do its back end processing, but that's my wild guess. How close am I? I've never gotten a clear answer out of google.

                        Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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                        TNCaver
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #31

                        The first paragraph in the book Azure Serverless Succinctly[^] by CP's very own Sander Rossel gives a good definition:

                        Quote:

                        Serverless computing is a cloud service where the cloud provider dynamically allocates infrastructure to run your code.

                        There are no solutions, only trade-offs.
                           - Thomas Sowell

                        A day can really slip by when you're deliberately avoiding what you're supposed to do.
                           - Calvin (Bill Watterson, Calvin & Hobbes)

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                        • T TNCaver

                          The first paragraph in the book Azure Serverless Succinctly[^] by CP's very own Sander Rossel gives a good definition:

                          Quote:

                          Serverless computing is a cloud service where the cloud provider dynamically allocates infrastructure to run your code.

                          There are no solutions, only trade-offs.
                             - Thomas Sowell

                          A day can really slip by when you're deliberately avoiding what you're supposed to do.
                             - Calvin (Bill Watterson, Calvin & Hobbes)

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                          honey the codewitch
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #32

                          That kind of makes sense to me except my little VPS does the same thing, and I don't understand the difference. Someone else explained it (I forget who now) as basically you're using someone else's server. That makes sense to me, although serverless != someone else's server, I at least understand it from a I guess a marketing? perspective even if it's a bit of a stretch.

                          Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

                          1 Reply Last reply
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                          • H honey the codewitch

                            It seems to be all the rage in web circles. I'm picturing an app that runs entirely in a browser and connects via web based APIs to do its back end processing, but that's my wild guess. How close am I? I've never gotten a clear answer out of google.

                            Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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                            Rage
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #33

                            honey the codewitch wrote:

                            It seems to be all the rage in web circles.

                            This is no way related to me. Brainless maybe, but I'll have my applications with a server, thank you. :)

                            Do not escape reality : improve reality !

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                            • H honey the codewitch

                              So now if I break into your place, hang out on your couch and channel surf, i am "homeless" :laugh: What will marketing think of next?

                              Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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                              Lost User
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #34

                              There are micro-services ... so there must also be micro-servers out there.

                              "Before entering on an understanding, I have meditated for a long time, and have foreseen what might happen. It is not genius which reveals to me suddenly, secretly, what I have to say or to do in a circumstance unexpected by other people; it is reflection, it is meditation." - Napoleon I

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • H honey the codewitch

                                It seems to be all the rage in web circles. I'm picturing an app that runs entirely in a browser and connects via web based APIs to do its back end processing, but that's my wild guess. How close am I? I've never gotten a clear answer out of google.

                                Check out my IoT graphics library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/gfx And my IoT UI/User Experience library here: https://honeythecodewitch.com/uix

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                                englebart
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #35

                                It is a way to simplify your deployment. The trade-off is it might cost you more money or save you some money depending on the traffic. It should always help with uptime/server-overload. If you are supporting traffic that sees incredible spikes, then this could auto-scale to help support the load. (Think Black Friday/Cyber Monday for retailers) If you have moderate, steady traffic, then it might not be worth it.

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