Knative vs Kubeless vs Serverless: What are the differences?

Key differences between Knative, Kubeless, and Serverless

Knative, Kubeless, and Serverless are popular tools in the domain of serverless computing. Despite some similarities, they have key differences. Here are six essential differences between these platforms:

1. Deployment: Knative allows developers to deploy both containerized and non-containerized workloads, offering more deployment flexibility. Kubeless, on the other hand, is specifically designed for deploying functions to Kubernetes clusters. Serverless frameworks, like AWS Lambda or Azure Functions, are typically suited for hosting functions as a service in cloud environments.

2. Scaling: Knative offers a more advanced scaling mechanism compared to Kubeless and Serverless frameworks. It automatically scales containers based on incoming request traffic and utilizes Kubernetes' Horizontal Pod Autoscaler. Kubeless has built-in scaling capabilities for function-based workloads, while traditional Serverless frameworks rely on the provider's scaling infrastructure.

3. Eventing: Knative provides built-in eventing support, allowing developers to easily create and consume events within their applications. Kubeless has limited support for event-driven architectures, usually relying on Kubernetes events or additional eventbus integrations. Serverless frameworks provide event triggers to execute functions in response to specific events, making them suitable for event-driven scenarios.

4. Language Support: Knative has broader language support, allowing developers to write functions in various languages and runtimes. Kubeless also supports multiple languages, but the available runtimes may be more limited. Serverless frameworks often have a vast array of supported languages, depending on the provider's offering.

5. Monitoring and Observability: Knative offers comprehensive monitoring and observability features, including integration with popular observability tools like Prometheus and Grafana. Kubeless provides basic monitoring capabilities, while Serverless frameworks usually have their own monitoring and logging solutions, like AWS CloudWatch or Azure Monitor.

6. Portability: Knative, being built on top of Kubernetes, offers better portability across different environments. Kubeless is tightly integrated with Kubernetes, which provides portability within Kubernetes clusters. Serverless frameworks are tied to specific cloud providers, making it harder to switch between platforms.

In summary, Knative provides more deployment flexibility, advanced scaling mechanisms, built-in eventing, broader language support, comprehensive monitoring, and better portability compared to Kubeless and traditional Serverless frameworks.