AWS Lambda Overview
Core Product
Information Resources

What is AWS Lambda?
AWS Lambda introduced serverless cloud computing to the masses as early as 2014. Being the first with a massive user-base, has set up Amazon Web Services for great success. It took a few years for competitors to offer similar functionality and to actually acknowledge the FaaS space as a new chapter in cloud compute.
Focus
AWS Lambda is a FaaS platform. It does not focus heavily on solving specific problems, but rather providing a platform to use for whatever event-driven workflows you might have. Because of Amazon’s extensive service catalog, Lambda does have heavy emphasis on compatibility and integration with other AWS services.
Key Features
- Deploy .zip file archives known as Lambda Layers that can contain library dependencies, a custom runtime, or configuration files. Reduce the size of your deployment packages, separate core function logic from dependencies, share dependencies across multiple functions, or use the Lambda console code editor.
- Integration for deploying functions packaged as Docker container images through Amazon Elastic Container Registry (ECR). Build and deploy containerized applications to Lambda with the extra functionality of Docker images stored in ECR.
With Amazon’s gigantic scale, a shift has started with companies that are on the AWS platform to move more and more of their infrastructure to serverless. AWS Lambda’s integration with other AWS services makes it an obvious choice for those already living in Amazon’s ecosystem. Unfortunately, it also inherits the cost prediction difficulties that AWS services are often criticized for.
Service Types
Functions Runtimes
Execution Limits and Resource Quotas
Just like with Lambda, duration cost depends on the amount of memory you allocate to your function. You can allocate any amount of memory to your function between 128 MB and 10 GB, in 1 MB increments. In contrast to Lambda, Lambda@Edge does not offer a free tier.
Lambda@Edge pricing does not vary by region. You are charged for the total number of requests across all your functions executed in all regions. Lambda@Edge counts a request each time it starts executing in response to an Amazon CloudFront event globally.
- Requests: $0.20 per 1M requests
- Duration: $0.0000166667 per GB-second
*Information is subject to change. Verify with the official AWS Lambda website.
Alternatives to AWS Lambda are generated by matching platform type and supported runtimes