Connecting AWS Lambda and API Gateway

Here are the Step-by-Step Guide to Connect AWS Lambda with API Gateway

Step 1: Set Up Your AWS Lambda Function

1. Log in to the AWS Console:

Navigate to AWS Management Console and access Lambda under Compute services.

2. Create a New Lambda Function:

Click on Create function.

Choose Author from scratch and give your function a name (e.g., MyFirstLambdaFunction).

Select the Runtime (e.g., Node.js, Python, or Java) suitable for your code.

Click Create function to set up your Lambda function.

3. Write or Upload Your Lambda Code:

In the Lambda editor, add your code. Here’s a simple example in Python to return a JSON response:

def lambda_handler(event, context):
    return {
        ‘statusCode’: 200,
        ‘body’: ‘Hello from Lambda!’
    }

4. Assign Permissions with IAM Roles:

Confirm that your Lambda function’s IAM role includes the AWSLambdaBasicExecutionRole policy, allowing Lambda to write logs to CloudWatch.

5. Test Your Lambda Function:

Save and test your Lambda function with sample data to ensure it’s working as expected.


Step 2: Set Up API Gateway

1. Access API Gateway:

In the AWS Console, search for API Gateway.

2. Create a New API:

Select Create API and choose either HTTP API or REST API based on your requirements:

HTTP API: Lightweight and ideal for low-latency connections.

REST API: More advanced, with features for controlling and customizing API behaviors.

Provide a name for your API (e.g., LambdaAPIGatewayIntegration) and add a description if needed.

3. Define Your API Endpoint:

Go to the Routes section and add a new route.

Specify the route path (e.g., /hello) and select an HTTP method (e.g., GET, POST).


Step 3: Connect Lambda to API Gateway as an Integration

1. Add Lambda Integration:

After creating the route, choose Add Integration and select Lambda.

2. Link Your Lambda Function:

In the integration settings, select your Lambda function (e.g., MyFirstLambdaFunction).

Verify that the Function ARN (Amazon Resource Name) matches your Lambda function, which establishes the link.

3. Grant Permissions to API Gateway:

API Gateway needs permission to invoke your Lambda function. When prompted, click OK to allow API Gateway to call your Lambda.

4. Configure Integration Request Settings:

If needed, add specific request headers or query parameters in the Integration Request to pass data to Lambda.


Step 4: Enable Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS)

1. Enable CORS:

If your API will be accessed from a different domain (e.g., from a web or mobile application), go to the Settings for the route.

Enable CORS and specify allowed methods (e.g., GET, POST) and headers.

2. Save Changes:

Make sure all configurations are saved before deploying.


Step 5: Deploy the API to Make It Accessible

1. Deploy Your API:

In the Deployments section, choose Deploy API.

Select a deployment stage, such as dev, test, or prod, which will represent different versions of your API.

Click Deploy to activate the endpoint.

2. Get Your API Gateway Endpoint URL:

After deployment, API Gateway will generate a unique endpoint URL for your API.

Use this URL to access your Lambda function through API Gateway.


Step 6: Test Your API Gateway-Lambda Connection

1. Use a Browser or API Client:

Open your browser or an API client like Postman to test the API.

Send a request to the API Gateway endpoint URL, appending the path you defined (e.g., https://api-id.execute-api.region.amazonaws.com/prod/hello).

2. Check the Response:

Verify that the Lambda function’s response (e.g., “Hello from Lambda!”) is returned as expected.

3. Troubleshoot as Needed:

If you encounter issues, review API Gateway settings and Lambda’s execution logs in CloudWatch for troubleshooting.


Additional Tips for Security and Performance Optimization

1. Secure Access with API Keys:

In API Gateway, enable API keys to restrict access to authorized users, improving security.

2. Use AWS IAM Authorization:

For advanced security, implement AWS IAM Authorization in API Gateway to control which users and services can invoke your Lambda function.

3. Enable Caching for Improved Performance:

In API Gateway, enable caching to reduce Lambda invocations, improving response times and lowering costs.

4. Monitor and Optimize with CloudWatch:

Use CloudWatch to monitor metrics for API Gateway and Lambda, helping you optimize performance and diagnose issues.


By following these steps, you’ll seamlessly connect your AWS Lambda function to API Gateway, creating a scalable, serverless API solution. This integration allows you to manage API traffic effectively, enforce security policies, and improve the user experience through a reliable, cloud-native infrastructure.

The article above is rendered by integrating outputs of 1 HUMAN AGENT & 3 AI AGENTS, an amalgamation of HGI and AI to serve technology education globally.

(Article By : Himanshu N)