Serverless vs container decision in AWS - Interactive Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to define a serverless function using AWS Lambda.

AWS

resource "aws_lambda_function" "example" {
  function_name = "my_lambda_function"
  runtime       = "python3.9"
  handler       = "handler.[1]"
  role          = aws_iam_role.lambda_exec.arn
  filename      = "lambda_function.zip"
}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Amain

Blambda_handler

Capp

Dindex

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using a handler name that does not exist in the code.

Confusing the handler with the filename.

The handler specifies the function AWS Lambda calls to start execution. The default in Python is often lambda_handler.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to define a container task in AWS ECS.

AWS

resource "aws_ecs_task_definition" "example" {
  family                   = "my_task"
  network_mode             = "awsvpc"
  requires_compatibilities = ["FARGATE"]
  cpu                      = "256"
  memory                   = "512"
  container_definitions    = jsonencode([
    {
      name      = "my_container",
      image     = "nginx:latest",
      essential = true,
      portMappings = [
        {
          containerPort = [1],
          hostPort      = 80,
          protocol      = "tcp"
        }
      ]
    }
  ])
}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A80

B22

C8080

D443

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Setting containerPort to a port not used by the container.

Confusing hostPort and containerPort.

The container port should match the port the container listens on. For nginx, the default is port 80.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the serverless function timeout setting.

AWS

resource "aws_lambda_function" "example" {
  function_name = "my_lambda_function"
  runtime       = "python3.9"
  handler       = "handler.lambda_handler"
  role          = aws_iam_role.lambda_exec.arn
  filename      = "lambda_function.zip"
  timeout       = [1]
}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A1000

B0

C900

D15

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Setting timeout to zero disables the function.

Using a timeout value greater than 900 seconds.

AWS Lambda timeout maximum is 900 seconds (15 minutes). Setting timeout to 1000 or 0 causes errors.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to configure an ECS service with desired count and launch type.

AWS

resource "aws_ecs_service" "example" {
  name            = "my_service"
  cluster         = aws_ecs_cluster.example.id
  task_definition = aws_ecs_task_definition.example.arn
  desired_count   = [1]
  launch_type     = "[2]"
}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A2

B1

CFARGATE

DEC2

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using EC2 launch type without EC2 instances.

Setting desired_count to zero disables the service.

The desired_count sets how many tasks run. Launch_type 'FARGATE' runs containers serverlessly without managing EC2 instances.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to create a serverless API Gateway integration with Lambda.

AWS

resource "aws_api_gateway_integration" "example" {
  rest_api_id             = aws_api_gateway_rest_api.example.id
  resource_id             = aws_api_gateway_resource.example.id
  http_method             = aws_api_gateway_method.example.http_method
  integration_http_method = "[1]"
  type                    = "[2]"
  uri                     = aws_lambda_function.example.[3]
}

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

APOST

BAWS_PROXY

Cinvoke_arn

DGET

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using incorrect HTTP method for integration.

Confusing Lambda ARN property names.

API Gateway integration with Lambda uses HTTP method POST, type AWS_PROXY, and the Lambda function's invoke_arn.

Practice

1. Which AWS service lets you run code without managing servers, automatically scaling with demand?

easy

A. Amazon ECS

B. AWS Lambda

C. Amazon EC2

D. AWS Elastic Beanstalk

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand serverless concept

   Serverless means you don't manage servers; code runs on demand.

2. Step 2: Identify AWS service matching serverless

   AWS Lambda runs code without server management and scales automatically.

3. Final Answer:

   AWS Lambda -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Serverless = AWS Lambda [OK]

Hint: Serverless means no servers to manage, pick Lambda [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing EC2 which requires server management
• Confusing containers with serverless
• Picking Elastic Beanstalk which manages servers but not fully serverless

2. Which AWS service is best described by this syntax snippet for deploying a container?

aws ecs create-cluster --cluster-name myCluster

easy

A. Amazon S3 bucket creation

B. AWS Lambda function deployment

C. Amazon ECS container cluster creation

D. AWS CloudFormation stack deployment

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the command

   The command uses 'aws ecs create-cluster' which is for ECS clusters.

2. Step 2: Match command to service

   ECS is AWS service for managing containers in clusters.

3. Final Answer:

   Amazon ECS container cluster creation -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   "aws ecs create-cluster" = ECS container cluster [OK]

Hint: ECS commands manage containers, Lambda uses different syntax [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking this command deploys Lambda functions
• Confusing S3 bucket commands with ECS
• Assuming CloudFormation syntax

3. You have a web app that needs to run continuously with custom OS settings. Which AWS option fits best?
Options:
A) AWS Lambda
B) AWS CloudFront
C) Amazon S3
D) Amazon ECS with Fargate

medium

A. AWS Lambda

B. AWS CloudFront

C. Amazon S3

D. Amazon ECS with Fargate

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify app requirements

   The app runs continuously and needs custom OS settings, so it needs control over environment.

2. Step 2: Match service to requirements

   AWS Lambda is event-driven and short-lived, not continuous. ECS with Fargate runs containers continuously with environment control.

3. Final Answer:

   Amazon ECS with Fargate -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Continuous app + custom OS = ECS Fargate [OK]

Hint: Continuous with custom OS? Choose containers (ECS) not Lambda [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing Lambda for continuous workloads
• Confusing S3 (storage) or CloudFront (CDN) as compute
• Ignoring environment control needs

4. You tried running a container on AWS Lambda but it failed. What is the likely cause?

medium

A. Lambda does not support running containers longer than 15 minutes

B. Lambda requires a Dockerfile to deploy containers

C. Lambda only supports Python code, not containers

D. Lambda cannot run containers at all

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand Lambda container support

   Lambda supports container images but has a max execution time of 15 minutes.

2. Step 2: Identify cause of failure

   If container runs longer than 15 minutes, Lambda will fail the execution.

3. Final Answer:

   Lambda does not support running containers longer than 15 minutes -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Lambda container max time = 15 minutes [OK]

Hint: Lambda containers have 15-minute max runtime limit [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking Lambda cannot run containers at all
• Believing Lambda only supports Python code
• Confusing Dockerfile requirement

5. Your startup wants to minimize costs and avoid managing servers for a new app with unpredictable traffic spikes. Which AWS approach is best?

hard

A. Deploy on AWS Lambda for automatic scaling and no server management

B. Use Amazon ECS with EC2 instances for full control

C. Host on Amazon EC2 with manual scaling

D. Use AWS Elastic Beanstalk with fixed server capacity

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze startup needs

   Startup wants to minimize costs and avoid managing servers, with unpredictable traffic.

2. Step 2: Match AWS service to needs

   AWS Lambda automatically scales with traffic and requires no server management, reducing cost and effort.

3. Step 3: Compare other options

   ECS with EC2 or Elastic Beanstalk requires server management or fixed capacity, increasing cost and complexity.

4. Final Answer:

   Deploy on AWS Lambda for automatic scaling and no server management -> Option A

5. Quick Check:

   Min cost + no servers + spikes = Lambda [OK]

Hint: No servers + spikes? Pick Lambda for auto scaling [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing ECS or EC2 which need server management
• Assuming Elastic Beanstalk auto-scales without servers
• Ignoring cost and management factors