Four ways cloud computing is impacting business
Serverless computing is rapidly gaining traction. From simple content management systems (CMS) to complex industrial control systems (ICS), cloud computing has left a deep-rooted impact on all verticals across various industries.
According to a recent State of the Cloud Report by RightScale, 94 percent of Respondents used cloud, with 91 percent adopting a public cloud while 72 percent utilizing a private cloud. The report also states that 13 percent of enterprises spend more than $12 million a year on public cloud, while 50 percent spend more than $1.2 million annually.
In this cloud computing model, the service providers handle most of the server operations, allowing users to focus on developing applications of their own. AWS Lambda by Amazon Web Services was the first-ever serverless cloud computing model introduced in 2014. Since then, leading serverless computing service providers have continued to innovate and offer cutting-edge features, setting new industry trends.
Let’s take a look at how serverless computing is changing the business world.
- Increased Focus on Business-Critical Tasks
Unlike monolithic computing, serverless computing allows you to focus on your codes, not servers. So, you don’t have to spend time and resources on maintaining and troubleshooting your IT infrastructure. Instead, your engineers and developers are able to focus on perfecting your products, exploring new business verticals, and increasing your sales.
For example, if you are running an online store, your customers are less likely to care about your infrastructure. Why would they bother about the code they can’t see? They will, however, care about the appearance, functionality, and speed of your e-commerce site. If you are using serverless computing, your developers can spend more time perfecting your UX than fixing back-end issues related to servers.
- Automatic Scaling Translates into Service Stability
One of the most critical aspects of running a business in this hyper-connected world is to ensure minimal or no downtime. However, it is also challenging to guarantee round-the-clock availability to your users.
Chances are your website will encounter a sudden uptick in traffic at some point. Maybe it’s your latest marketing campaign drawing the attention of your prospects. However, it is good news only if your website can handle the sudden spike in traffic.
Unfortunately, most server-based platforms often fail to handle a sudden rise in traffic, forcing you to shut down your business at a time when it is about to hit the jackpot. You can, of course, rent extra servers to keep your website ready for a potential spike. However, it will put a dent in your IT budget.
That’s where a serverless computing system comes in. Most serverless computing service providers offer automatic scaling in the event of a sudden traffic spike. You can roll back to your original plan as soon as the traffic subsides. It is a win-win for everyone including, your customers, developers or engineers, and the C-suites.
- Shorter Time to Market with Serverless Microservices
Microservice, an architectural approach to creating serverless cloud-based applications, can help you build your application quickly and easily. It is an alternative to conventional monolith architecture. Several big brands such as PayPal, Netflix, and Twitter are using microservice architecture.
In this type of cloud computing architecture, each application is designed and functions as a set of services. Each service, in turn, runs processes and communicates via Application Programming Interfaces (API) of its own.
As each microservice is an independent set of code, you can deploy, rebuild, manage, and re-deploy each microservice independently. Even if a microservice encounters a problem, it won’t bring the entire system to a halt.
Microservices also allow you to use a code anywhere in its ecosystem with a simple API call. As microservices communicate via API, you can use various programming languages, databases, and software environments to build your applications. All these features translate into to a quick turnaround for building, testing, and deploying applications. A shorter go-to-market time means you can start making profits quickly.
However, a cloud platform can use the serverless microservices architecture to handle specific tasks as and when needed. It can lead to massive operational cost savings, especially for applications with higher and faster computing needs.
- Big Savings on Building and Running Software Systems
Perhaps the most recognizable impact of serverless computing is lower cost. Although you will probably need to spend some money on hiring a cloud migration service provider, the long-term savings are well worth it.
Most serverless solutions providers charge on a pay-per-use basis, resulting in a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) compared to Virtual Machines (VMs). Thus, serverless architecture can help you lower costs for building, maintaining, and running software systems. The bigger your operations, higher your savings will be.
The pay-per-use pricing model is particularly useful in running event-driven applications. For many companies and even small businesses, some applications may have to handle requests in bulk, but they remain idle for most of the time. In this case, using the traditional dedicated server model would mean paying a higher cost for an underused application.
Little guys like Avner Sorek have already taken advantage of serverless computing. Avner moved a simple Express.JS application from AWS Elastic Beanstalk to Lambda plus APIG, bringing his monthly costs down from $44.95 to $6.12, a staggering 90 percent decrease. The application was a side project called libhive with 50-150 daily visits. A tech startup called Heavywater also reduced its monthly AWS bill from $30,000 to $4,000, resulting in 70 percent savings.
Parting Words
Serverless cloud computing is a revolutionary development in the digital space. Moving your business or at least parts of it to a serverless platform will shorten the go-to-market time, allow you to focus on your core business responsibilities, improve your service stability, and result in significant savings on building and running software systems. The above four factors are reshaping the business world for good. The question is when will your business get on the serverless computing wagon? Tell us about your cloud migration plans in the comments section below.
Written by: Fabrice Beaux, BOSS Contributor
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