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aws-lambda-functions — Claude Code skill: deploy Lambda without

A skill that walks your agent through creating and deploying AWS Lambda functions: event sources, permissions, layers, environment config.

Install into Claude Code · Skills CLI (Vercel) All methods and platforms ↓
npx skills add aj-geddes/useful-ai-prompts --skill aws-lambda-functions -a claude-code
Open on GitHub

What aws-lambda-functions does

The skill covers AWS Lambda from several angles: plain AWS CLI, Node.js, Terraform and SAM. Five reference guides live in the references/ directory — a basic CLI function, a Node.js version, a Terraform deployment, a SAM build, and shared Lambda layers. The agent picks the guide that matches your stack instead of improvising commands.

The quick start builds an execution role first: aws iam create-role with lambda.amazonaws.com as the trusted principal, then aws iam attach-role-policy for AWSLambdaBasicExecutionRole, then zipping the code and calling aws lambda create-function. You need a configured AWS CLI with IAM and Lambda permissions before any of that runs — otherwise the very first command fails on access denied. Worth checking before you hand the task to an agent.

The best-practices section lists the usual production breakers: secrets in code, operations past 15 minutes, missing concurrency limits, ignored CloudWatch metrics. Licensed MIT, authored by aj-geddes.

What it helps with

  • create an execution role and attach the basic policy to it
  • deploy a Lambda function from a ZIP with the AWS CLI
  • move shared code into a layer and reuse it across functions
  • describe the same function in Terraform or SAM instead of manual commands
  • set environment variables and concurrency limits

Example prompts for the agent

  • Create a Node.js Lambda function triggered by S3 uploads, with an execution role
  • Show me how to package shared dependencies as a Lambda layer and attach it
  • Write a SAM template for this function and add its environment variables

How to install aws-lambda-functions

1Skills CLI (Vercel)

npx skills add aj-geddes/useful-ai-prompts --skill aws-lambda-functions -a claude-code

2Manually: put the files in place

~/.claude/skills/aws-lambda-functions/SKILL.md

Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/aws-lambda-functions/

Step by step, with commands for each platform: How to install skills in Claude Code: five ways

Questions about aws-lambda-functions

How do I install aws-lambda-functions in Claude?

Run npx skills add aj-geddes/useful-ai-prompts --skill aws-lambda-functions -a claude-code. The skill file lands at ~/.claude/skills/aws-lambda-functions/SKILL.md.

What does aws-lambda-functions do?

It gives the agent instructions for building and deploying AWS Lambda functions — roles, permissions, layers, environment configuration — with examples in AWS CLI, Node.js, Terraform and SAM.

What do I need before using it?

A configured AWS CLI with IAM and Lambda permissions. Creating the execution role and attaching the policy are the first steps, and they fail without those rights.

Source text

SKILL.md · MIT
---
name: aws-lambda-functions
description: >
  Create and deploy serverless functions using AWS Lambda with event sources,
  permissions, layers, and environment configuration. Use for event-driven
  computing without managing servers.
---

# AWS Lambda Functions

## Table of Contents

- [Overview](#overview)
- [When to Use](#when-to-use)
- [Quick Start](#quick-start)
- [Reference Guides](#reference-guides)
- [Best Practices](#best-practices)

## Overview

AWS Lambda enables you to run code without provisioning or managing servers. Build serverless applications using event-driven triggers, pay only for compute time consumed, and scale automatically with workload.

## When to Use

- API endpoints and webhooks
- Scheduled batch jobs and data processing
- Real-time file processing (S3 uploads)
- Event-driven workflows (SNS, SQS)
- Microservices and backend APIs
- Data transformations and ETL jobs
- IoT and sensor data processing
- WebSocket connections

## Quick Start

Minimal working example:

```bash
# Create Lambda execution role
aws iam create-role \
  --role-name lambda-execution-role \
  --assume-role-policy-document '{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [{
      "Effect": "Allow",
      "Principal": {"Service": "lambda.amazonaws.com"},
      "Action": "sts:AssumeRole"
    }]
  }'

# Attach basic execution policy
aws iam attach-role-policy \
  --role-name lambda-execution-role \
  --policy-arn arn:aws:iam::aws:policy/service-role/AWSLambdaBasicExecutionRole

# Create function from ZIP
zip function.zip index.js
aws lambda create-function \
  --function-name my-function \
  --runtime nodejs18.x \
  --role arn:aws:iam::ACCOUNT:role/lambda-execution-role \
  --handler index.handler \
  --zip-file fileb://function.zip \
// ... (see reference guides for full implementation)
```

## Reference Guides

Detailed implementations in the `references/` directory:

| Guide | Contents |
|---|---|
| [Basic Lambda Function with AWS CLI](references/basic-lambda-function-with-aws-cli.md) | Basic Lambda Function with AWS CLI |
| [Lambda Function with Node.js](references/lambda-function-with-nodejs.md) | Lambda Function with Node.js |
| [Terraform Lambda Deployment](references/terraform-lambda-deployment.md) | Terraform Lambda Deployment |
| [Lambda with SAM (Serverless Application Model)](references/lambda-with-sam-serverless-application-model.md) | Lambda with SAM (Serverless Application Model) |
| [Lambda Layers for Code Sharing](references/lambda-layers-for-code-sharing.md) | Lambda Layers for Code Sharing |

## Best Practices

### ✅ DO

- Use environment variables for configuration
- Implement proper error handling and logging
- Optimize package size and dependencies
- Set appropriate timeout and memory
- Use Lambda Layers for shared code
- Implement concurrency limits
- Enable X-Ray tracing for debugging
- Use reserved concurrency for critical functions

### ❌ DON'T

- Store sensitive data in code
- Create long-running operations (>15 min)
- Ignore cold start optimization
- Forget to handle concurrent executions
- Ignore CloudWatch metrics
- Use too much memory unnecessarily

© aj-geddes · MIT · aj-geddes/useful-ai-prompts

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