Backend as a Service

The BaaS was conceptualized by Auth0 and Google Firebase. Auth0 started as authentication as a service, but moved to FaaS.  So basically, BaaS is third-party service through which we can implement our required functionality, and it will provide server-side logic for the implementation of the application.

The common approach is that most web and mobile application developers code their own authentication functionality, such as login, registration, and password management, and each of these services has its own API, which has to be incorporated into the application. But this was complicated and time consuming for developers, and BaaS providers made it easy by having a unified API and SDK and bridging them with the frontend of the application so that developers did not have to worry about developing their own backend services for each service. In this way, time and money was saved.

Say, for example, that we want to build a portal that would require authentication to consume our services. We would need login, signup, and authentication systems in place, and we would also need to make it easy for the consumer to sign in with just a click of a button using their existing Google or Facebook or Twitter account. Developing these functionalities individually requires lots of time and effort.

But by using BaaS, we can easily integrate our portal to sign up and authenticate using a Google, Facebook, or Twitter account. Another BaaS service is Firebase, provided by Google. Firebase is a database service that is used by mobile apps, where database administration overhead is mitigated, and it provides authorization for different types of users. In a nutshell, this is how BaaS works. Let's look at the FaaS side of the serverless approach.