Fission vs OpenFaaS: What are the differences?

Introduction

Fission and OpenFaaS are both serverless frameworks that aim to simplify the deployment and scaling of applications. While they have similar goals, there are several key differences between the two.

1. Language Support: Fission supports a wide range of programming languages including Python, Ruby, Node.js, and Go. On the other hand, OpenFaaS primarily focuses on supporting Docker containers, allowing developers to use their preferred programming language within a containerized environment.

2. Execution Model: Fission follows a "Functions as a Service" (FaaS) execution model, where functions are automatically deployed and scaled based on demand. OpenFaaS, on the other hand, supports both the traditional "Functions as a Service" model as well as a "Functions as a Service with Kubernetes" (FaaS-Kubernetes) model. This allows developers to choose between a more serverless-focused execution model or leverage the power and flexibility of Kubernetes.

3. Deployment Flexibility: Fission provides a built-in, fully managed environment for deploying functions without the need for managing underlying infrastructure. OpenFaaS, on the other hand, offers more deployment flexibility by leveraging Kubernetes as its underlying platform. This allows developers to run functions in their own Kubernetes clusters, giving them greater control over their deployments.

4. Community and Ecosystem: OpenFaaS has a larger and more mature community compared to Fission. It has a wide range of contributors and a vast ecosystem of community-driven plugins, templates, and integrations. Fission, although newer, is rapidly growing and gaining popularity but currently has a smaller community and ecosystem by comparison.

5. Event Sources: Fission provides built-in support for a variety of event sources, including HTTP triggers, message queues, and databases. OpenFaaS also supports HTTP triggers but relies on external providers like NATS and Kafka for additional event sources. This gives Fission a more streamlined approach to integrating with various event-driven architectures.

6. User Experience: Fission aims to provide a simpler user experience by abstracting away the complexities of infrastructure management. It focuses on easy installation, automated scaling, and seamless function deployments. OpenFaaS, while more flexible, requires some level of familiarity with Kubernetes and Docker. This gives Fission an advantage for developers looking for a more straightforward and quick setup.

In summary, Fission and OpenFaaS are both powerful serverless frameworks, but they differ in language support, execution models, deployment flexibility, community and ecosystem, event source integrations, and user experience. Choose Fission if you prefer a simpler setup and focus on programming languages, while OpenFaaS provides more flexibility and control through its integration with Kubernetes.