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Netlify moves Edge Functions to Firecracker MicroVMs for 5x faster median execution

netlify.com 8 min read Editor score 8/10

Netlify moved Edge Functions from a hosted execution service to MicroVMs in its edge network, reporting roughly 5x better median speed alongside security and reliability gains. The migration offers concrete lessons in runtime architecture and edge execution.

What: Netlify moved Edge Functions from a hosted execution service to MicroVMs inside its edge network.
How: Requests reach an edge node, are routed to a compute node, and enter a MicroVM; warm invocations now take about 5–6ms at median.
Why it matters: The change improves security and reliability while reducing latency for high-volume edge workloads.

A matched request is routed inside Netlify's network from the edge node to a MicroVM. Sketched from the article's own text.

Read on netlify.com → Hacker News · 60 comments

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