SST v3 Has a Free API: Build Full-Stack Serverless Apps on AWS with Zero Config

#aws #serverless #typescript #tutorial

What is SST?

SST (Serverless Stack) is a framework for building full-stack applications on AWS. Version 3 is a complete rewrite using Pulumi under the hood, with a dramatically simpler API.

SST v3 lets you define your entire AWS infrastructure in TypeScript — and deploy it with a single command.

Quick Start

npx sst@latest init
npx sst dev

This gives you a live development environment with real AWS resources — not emulators.

Define Infrastructure

// sst.config.ts
export default $config({
  app(input) {
    return {
      name: "my-app",
      home: "aws",
    };
  },
  async run() {
    // Create an API
    const api = new sst.aws.ApiGatewayV2("MyApi");
    api.route("GET /", "packages/functions/src/hello.handler");
    api.route("GET /users", "packages/functions/src/users.list");
    api.route("POST /users", "packages/functions/src/users.create");

    // Create a database
    const db = new sst.aws.Dynamo("MyTable", {
      fields: { pk: "string", sk: "string" },
      primaryIndex: { hashKey: "pk", rangeKey: "sk" },
    });

    // Create a bucket
    const bucket = new sst.aws.Bucket("MyBucket");

    // Link resources to functions
    api.route("POST /upload", {
      handler: "packages/functions/src/upload.handler",
      link: [bucket, db],
    });

    // Create a frontend
    new sst.aws.Nextjs("MyFrontend", {
      link: [api],
    });
  },
});

Use Linked Resources

// packages/functions/src/upload.ts
import { Resource } from "sst";
import { S3Client, PutObjectCommand } from "@aws-sdk/client-s3";

const s3 = new S3Client({});

export const handler = async (event) => {
  // Resource.MyBucket is auto-typed!
  await s3.send(new PutObjectCommand({
    Bucket: Resource.MyBucket.name,
    Key: "file.txt",
    Body: "Hello World",
  }));

  return { statusCode: 200, body: "Uploaded!" };
};

Type-safe resource linking — Resource.MyBucket.name is validated at compile time.

Key Components

// Cron job
new sst.aws.Cron("MyCron", {
  schedule: "rate(1 hour)",
  job: "packages/functions/src/cron.handler",
});

// Queue
const queue = new sst.aws.Queue("MyQueue");
queue.subscribe("packages/functions/src/queue.handler");

// Email
new sst.aws.Email("MyEmail", {
  sender: "noreply@myapp.com",
});

// Auth
const auth = new sst.aws.Auth("MyAuth", {
  authenticator: "packages/functions/src/auth.handler",
});

// Static site
new sst.aws.StaticSite("MySite", {
  path: "packages/web",
  build: { output: "dist", command: "npm run build" },
  domain: "myapp.com",
});

Live Lambda Development

npx sst dev

This connects your local machine to real AWS — changes to Lambda functions are reflected instantly (no deploy needed). Set breakpoints, see logs in real-time.

Deploy

# Deploy to production
npx sst deploy --stage production

# Remove all resources
npx sst remove

Why SST v3?

Feature	SST v3	Serverless Framework	CDK
Language	TypeScript	YAML	TypeScript
Live Dev	Real AWS	Emulator	None
Resource Linking	Type-safe	Manual	Manual
Frontend Support	Built-in	None	None
Deploy Speed	~30s	2-5 min	2-5 min