How to write GCP Cloud Functions using Python and Flask

If you’re looking to build serverless functions on Google Cloud Platform (GCP), you might want to consider using Python and Flask. GCP Cloud Functions allow you to run code in response to events without the need to provision or manage servers. This can be a great way to handle lightweight, event-driven tasks without worrying about infrastructure.

Getting Started

To get started with GCP Cloud Functions using Python and Flask, you’ll need to have a GCP account and have the gcloud command-line tool installed. Once you’re set up, you can create a new Cloud Function by running the following command:

gcloud functions deploy NAME --runtime python37 --trigger-http --entry-point ENTRY_POINT

Replace NAME with the name of your function, and ENTRY_POINT with the name of the function in your Python code that should be invoked when the function is triggered. You can also specify other options such as memory allocation and timeout using the gcloud command-line tool.

Writing the Function

Now that you have your Cloud Function set up, it’s time to write the Python code that will be executed when the function is triggered. For this example, let’s create a simple Flask web application that will respond to HTTP requests with a greeting.

from flask import Flask
app = Flask(__name__)

@app.route('/')
def hello_world():
  return 'Hello, World!'

if __name__ == '__main__':
  app.run()

In this example, we define a Flask application with a single route that responds to requests to the root URL with a “Hello, World!” message. When this code is deployed as a Cloud Function, it will respond to HTTP requests with this message.

Deploying the Function

With your Python code written, you can now deploy your Cloud Function using the gcloud command-line tool. Once deployed, you can access your function via its HTTPS endpoint and start sending it requests.

That’s it! You’ve now created and deployed a Cloud Function using Python and Flask. This is just a simple example, but you can use Python and Flask to build more complex and powerful serverless applications on GCP.

For more information on using GCP Cloud Functions with Python, check out the official documentation at https://cloud.google.com/functions/docs.