Topological Analysis for Identifying Anomalies in Serverless Platforms

TL;DR

This work introduces a topological model for serverless services and reveals that these harmonic flows emerge naturally from different types of inter-function interactions, and presents an iterative method for analyzing inter-function flows.

Abstract

The information flows in serverless platforms are complex and non-conservative. This is a direct result of how independently deployed functions interact under the platform coarse-grained control mechanisms. To manage this complexity, we introduce a topological model for serverless services. Using Hodge decomposition, we can separate observed operational flows into two distinct categories. They include components that can be corrected locally and harmonic modes that persist at any scale. Our analysis reveals that these harmonic flows emerge naturally from different types of inter-function interactions. They should be understood as structural properties of serverless systems, not as configuration errors. Building on this insight, we present an iterative method for analyzing inter-function flows. This method helps deriving practical remediation strategies. One such strategy is the introduction of "dumping effects" to contain harmonic inefficiencies, offering an alternative to completely restructuring the service's topological model. Our experimental results confirm that this approach can uncover latent architectural structures.

Figures (6)

• Figure 1: Graph of the running example, including sagas.
• Figure 2: Functional J value over iteration cycles.
• Figure 3: Metric terms.
• Figure 4: Harmonic norms.
• Figure 5: Harmonic components.