Google Cloud, scaled to zero when idle.
Cloud Run services that cost nothing when idle, Cloud SQL Postgres for the record, Cloud Scheduler for the nightly agents, Secret Manager for keys, in a project the client owns. The article engine behind this site runs the same way.
- The agent reads
- Nothing of yours outside the project
- The agent writes
- Deployments from source to Cloud Run
- Schema migrations to Cloud SQL, versioned
- Scheduled runs through Cloud Scheduler
- A person approves
- IAM changes
- Deleting an instance or a bucket
- Raising a service’s minimum instances above zero (a cost decision)
Setting it up.
| Project | Created under the client’s billing account; KYN as a role with the least permissions needed; MFA on owners. | |
| Region | asia-southeast1 (Singapore). | |
| Scale | Services scale to zero by default; an always-on instance only where latency needs it, and the cost is stated first. | |
| Cost | Hosting billed by Google to the client; an idle stack runs close to S$0 a month, a busy one under S$60. | |
Builds that use it.
Will and estate-planning document platform →Receipts, expense claims and GST →Article engine →Build library →
Questions buyers ask
Why scale to zero?
- Most SME agents run on a schedule or on an event. A service that sleeps between runs costs nothing between them. Two always-on services cost one client S$154 a month before they were scaled to zero.
Who owns the project?
- You. It sits under your billing account; KYN holds a revocable role. Remove it and everything keeps running.
Can the nightly agents be paused?
- Yes, from Cloud Scheduler in your console, per job, without touching code.
AWS or Google Cloud?
- Either; the pattern is the same. Follow where your other systems and your team’s logins already live.