PDF generation remains a critical yet resource-intensive task for countless applications, from invoicing systems to report engines. Traditionally, managing browser-based PDF rendering at scale required complex server upkeep—until now. Ivan Muñoz's open-source solution combines Puppeteer's headless Chrome capabilities with AWS Lambda's serverless architecture, all orchestrated through GitHub Actions for seamless CI/CD. This approach not only cuts costs but also eliminates server management, letting developers focus on functionality rather than infrastructure.

Why Puppeteer in Lambda Changes the Game

Puppeteer excels at automating browser tasks like PDF creation, but running it on traditional servers often leads to scalability headaches and maintenance burdens. By packaging it within AWS Lambda:
- Automatic scaling handles traffic spikes without manual intervention
- Pay-per-use pricing reduces costs for intermittent workloads
- Zero server management frees teams from patching and monitoring overhead

Muñoz's template repository provides a battle-tested foundation, converting Puppeteer scripts into an HTTP-triggered API. As one developer notes:

"Serverless Puppeteer turns ephemeral tasks like PDF generation into stateless, event-driven processes—perfect for unpredictable workloads."

Key Implementation Steps

  1. Local Setup: Clone the repo, install dependencies, and test locally:
git clone https://github.com/ivanalemunioz/puppeteer-pdf-lambda-auto-deploy.git
npm install
npm run dev

Test with a curl command to generate PDFs from HTML input, leveraging Puppeteer's full PDF options.

  1. AWS Infrastructure: Create a Lambda function (Node.js 22.x, x86_64 architecture), S3 bucket for storage, and IAM user with AWSLambda_FullAccess and AmazonS3FullAccess policies. Critical tip:

    "Arm64 architecture won't work—stick to x86_64 to avoid Chromium compatibility issues."

  2. Automated Deployments: Configure GitHub Actions secrets for AWS credentials and variables for resource names. The workflow handles:

  • Packaging Puppeteer and Chromium as a Lambda layer
  • Uploading artifacts to S3
  • Updating the Lambda function on every main branch push

Navigating Pitfalls

Common challenges include timeout errors (fix by increasing Lambda memory to 1024MB+), permission misconfigurations, and regional mismatches between S3/Lambda. Enable AWS CloudWatch Logs for real-time debugging and validate IAM policies scoped precisely to S3/Lambda access.

The Serverless Advantage

This pipeline exemplifies modern DevOps: By treating infrastructure as code, teams gain reproducible deployments and audit trails. The integration extends beyond PDFs—adapt it for screenshot services, web scraping, or accessibility audits. As serverless runtimes mature, complex browser automation becomes increasingly feasible without provisioning servers, reshaping how developers approach ephemeral compute tasks.

Source: Based on Ivan Muñoz's guide and GitHub repository.