Deploying Applications on Google Cloud Run

Google Cloud Run is a fully managed compute platform that automatically scales your stateless containers. This guide covers everything you need to know to deploy and manage applications on Cloud Run.

Architecture Overview

Key Features

| Feature | Description | |---------|-------------| | Automatic Scaling | Scales to zero when not in use | | Request-based Billing | Pay only for actual usage | | Container Support | Run any container image | | HTTPS Endpoints | Automatic SSL/TLS certificates | | Custom Domains | Map your own domain names |

Getting Started

1. Building a Container

First, create a simple application and containerize it:

# Dockerfile
FROM node:18-slim

WORKDIR /app
COPY package*.json ./
RUN npm install
COPY . .

ENV PORT=8080
EXPOSE 8080

CMD ["npm", "start"]

Example Node.js application:

// app.js
const express = require('express');
const app = express();
const port = process.env.PORT || 8080;

app.get('/', (req, res) => {
  res.send('Hello from Cloud Run!');
});

app.listen(port, () => {
  console.log(`Server running on port ${port}`);
});

2. Building and Pushing the Image

# Build the container image
gcloud builds submit --tag gcr.io/PROJECT_ID/my-app

# Deploy to Cloud Run
gcloud run deploy my-service \
  --image gcr.io/PROJECT_ID/my-app \
  --platform managed \
  --region us-central1 \
  --allow-unauthenticated

Configuration Options

Service Configuration

# service.yaml
apiVersion: serving.knative.dev/v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: my-service
spec:
  template:
    spec:
      containers:
        - image: gcr.io/PROJECT_ID/my-app
          env:
            - name: NODE_ENV
              value: "production"
          resources:
            limits:
              cpu: "1"
              memory: "256Mi"
          ports:
            - containerPort: 8080

Environment Variables and Secrets

# Set environment variables
gcloud run services update my-service \
  --set-env-vars KEY1=VALUE1,KEY2=VALUE2

# Use secrets from Secret Manager
gcloud run services update my-service \
  --set-secrets="MY_SECRET=my-secret:latest"

Advanced Features

1. Custom Domain Mapping

# Map custom domain
gcloud beta run domain-mappings create \
  --service my-service \
  --domain www.example.com

2. Traffic Splitting

# Split traffic between revisions
gcloud run services update-traffic my-service \
  --to-revisions=v1=50,v2=50

Security Best Practices

1. Authentication and Authorization

# Require authentication
gcloud run services update my-service \
  --no-allow-unauthenticated

# Grant invoker role
gcloud run services add-iam-policy-binding my-service \
  --member="user:jane@example.com" \
  --role="roles/run.invoker"

2. Network Security

# Configure VPC connector
gcloud run services update my-service \
  --vpc-connector my-connector

# Configure egress settings
gcloud run services update my-service \
  --vpc-egress all-traffic

Monitoring and Logging

1. Viewing Logs

# View service logs
gcloud logging read "resource.type=cloud_run_revision AND \
  resource.labels.service_name=my-service" \
  --limit 10

2. Monitoring Metrics

Key metrics to monitor:

• Request count and latency
• Container instance count
• Memory and CPU usage
• Error rates

Performance Optimization

1. Container Optimization

• Use multi-stage builds
• Minimize image size
• Optimize startup time

# Multi-stage build example
FROM node:18 AS builder
WORKDIR /app
COPY package*.json ./
RUN npm install
COPY . .
RUN npm run build

FROM node:18-slim
WORKDIR /app
COPY --from=builder /app/dist ./dist
COPY package*.json ./
RUN npm install --production
CMD ["npm", "start"]

2. Resource Configuration

• Set appropriate memory limits
• Configure concurrency
• Optimize cold start times

# Configure resources
gcloud run services update my-service \
  --memory 512Mi \
  --cpu 1 \
  --concurrency 80

Troubleshooting

1. Common Issues

# Check service status
gcloud run services describe my-service

# View revision details
gcloud run revisions list \
  --service my-service

# Check container logs
gcloud logging read "resource.type=cloud_run_revision" \
  --project=PROJECT_ID

2. Health Checks

# health-check.yaml
spec:
  template:
    spec:
      containers:
        - image: gcr.io/PROJECT_ID/my-app
          livenessProbe:
            httpGet:
              path: /health
              port: 8080
          readinessProbe:
            httpGet:
              path: /ready
              port: 8080

Cost Optimization

1. Optimize Container Resources

   • Right-size memory and CPU
   • Use minimum instances wisely
   • Implement efficient auto-scaling

2. Request Handling

   • Implement caching where appropriate
   • Optimize response times
   • Use compression

Conclusion

Cloud Run provides a powerful platform for running containerized applications with zero infrastructure management. Key takeaways:

• Use container best practices
• Implement proper security measures
• Monitor performance and costs
• Optimize for scalability
• Leverage Cloud Run features

For more information, refer to the official Cloud Run documentation.