Google Cloud Functions Deep Dive

By Joseph Lowery

Dive in to Google Cloud Functions—everything it is and everything it does!

6 hours
  • 37 Lessons
  • 3 Hands-On Labs

About the course

Google Cloud Functions is a serverless, event-driven, managed platform for building and connecting cloud services. It’s a code-centric service where the functions you write can be triggered by an HTTP request or any number of cloud events both on and off Google Cloud.

At the start of the course, I’ll thoroughly explain what a serverless, event-driven, managed platform for building and connecting cloud services actually means and what it’s capable of. We’ll cover Cloud Functions’ primary features and benefits – one of the most compelling of which is its flexibility, a fact attested to by the wide spectrum of use cases we’ll discuss. Then, we’ll dig a little deeper to reveal what makes a Cloud Function function, including a full discussion of the different types of Cloud Functions along with their component aspects events and triggers. I’ll even go over the pricing of Cloud Functions, something everyone involved in related projects should be aware of.

After you’re thoroughly familiar with the overall structure of Cloud Functions, we’ll begin exploring working with them. I’ll show you how to set up a proper development environment whether you’re on a Mac, Windows, or Linux system and get your first function deployed right out of the gate. Then, we’ll dive into the particulars of coding functions, specifically in Python: how to code for specific scenarios, like working with JSON variables, or particular situations, such as responding to a trigger from an app in another domain.

I’ll give you all the command line code you’ll need for deploying your Cloud Functions, complete with full coverage of the available parameters. We’ll also discuss deploying Cloud Functions from a variety of sources including repositories like Github.

Cloud Functions can be triggered through a variety of methods and one of the most common is to use another Google Cloud service. We’ll discuss how to handle those most frequently relied on, among them Cloud Pub/Sub and Cloud Storage as well as some of the more targeted services like Cloud SQL and Stackdriver.

Testing is also critical in any app development and Cloud Functions is no different. We’ll examine several relevant testing strategies along with a look at implementing a CI/CD workflow with Cloud Functions.

The final section of the course really takes off with an in-depth look at a number of different real-world scenarios. These use cases range from retrieving queried data from Cloud SQL, tying together four different Google Cloud services to extract and translate text from images, and integrating with a third-party service to send a text message anywhere in the world all triggered by your Cloud Functions.

I’m really excited to show you all of what Cloud Functions can do and exactly how to do it. It’s a really solid solution for an ever-increasing number of use cases and an excellent tool to have in your cloud computing tool chest.

So, come on, let’s get started with our Google Cloud Functions Deep Dive.

Download The Function Flow here: https://interactive.linuxacademy.com/diagrams/TheFunctionFlow.html

  • Chapter 1 5 Lessons Getting Started 12:00

    An Important Note About A Cloud Guru and Linux Academy Courses

    1:19

    Course Introduction

    3:40

    About the Course Author

    1:08

    Using the Interactive Diagram

    3:09

    Course Features and Tools

    2:44
  • Chapter 2 3 Lessons Overview of Cloud Functions 43:52

    Introduction to Google Cloud Functions

    18:14

    First Look: Cloud Functions, Events, and Triggers

    10:27

    Managing Costs and Quotas

    15:11
  • Chapter 3 5 Lessons Setting Up for Cloud Functions 1:39:00

    Section Introduction

    2:32

    Utilizing the Console and Shell

    13:40

    Establishing a Local Environment

    11:51

    Working with Environment Variables

    10:57

    Powering Google Cloud APIs with Cloud Functions

    1:00:00 Hands-On Lab
  • Chapter 4 2 Lessons Coding Cloud Functions 23:31

    Crafting HTTP Functions

    14:17

    Developing Background Functions

    9:14
  • Chapter 5 2 Lessons Deploying Cloud Functions 16:32

    Deploying from Your Development Environment

    6:35

    Deploying from the Console or a Repository

    9:57
  • Chapter 6 5 Lessons Triggering Cloud Functions 1:23:35

    Calling Triggers Directly

    7:07

    Triggering Functions via Cloud Pub/Sub

    8:15

    Establishing Cloud Storage Triggers

    8:41

    Accessing Cloud SQL

    14:32

    Integrating Cloud Functions and Cloud SQL

    45:00 Hands-On Lab
  • Chapter 7 3 Lessons Tracking Cloud Functions 55:21

    Integrating Stackdriver Logging and Monitoring

    18:01

    Reporting Errors to Stackdriver

    7:20

    Sending SMS Text via Cloud Functions

    30:00 Hands-On Lab
  • Chapter 8 3 Lessons Testing and Developing Cloud Functions 29:40

    Running Cloud Function Tests

    12:29

    Using Cloud Build for CI/CD with Cloud Functions

    12:05

    Section Conclusion and Summary

    5:06
  • Chapter 9 3 Lessons Use Case: Extracting Data 25:06

    Section Introduction

    0:55

    Use Case Overview

    3:21

    Pulling Data from SQL Queries

    20:50
  • Chapter 10 2 Lessons Use Case: Gathering and Converting Visual Information 26:28

    Use Case Overview

    2:37

    Translating Text from Images

    23:51
  • Chapter 11 3 Lessons Use Case: Delivering Text Messages 13:43

    Use Case Overview

    2:32

    Delivering Text Messages

    8:56

    Section Conclusion and Summary

    2:15
  • Chapter 12 1 Lesson Final Steps 1:43

    What's Next?

    1:43

What are Hands-on Labs

What's the difference between theoretical knowledge and real skills? Practical real-world experience. That's where Hands-on Labs come in! Hands-on Labs are guided, interactive experiences that help you learn and practice real-world scenarios in real cloud environments. Hands-on Labs are seamlessly integrated in courses, so you can learn by doing.

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