Google Cloud Functions RSS iTunes podcasts feed example

This recipe shows how to create a simple RSS iTunes podcasts feed. It uses Cloud Datastore as metadata storage and Cloudstorage as media content storage It allows list podcasts stored in Cloud Datastore from a lightweight Cloud Function.

You can check deployed version of podcast RSS feed here: https://europe-west1-happy-hour-231301.cloudfunctions.net/getitunesrssfeed

And if you like elegant and stylish House music subscribe to iTunes podcast: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/happy-hour/id1173888893?mt=2

Architecture

The application is built with serverless approach in mind and leverages Google Cloud solutions.

File Storage

Google Cloud Storage is used to store podcast images and mp3 files.
Podcasts are organized in folders for each episode inside a bucket

Data Storage

We use Google Cloud Datastore to persist podcast metadata and episode details in two kinds:
- podcast
- podcast_episode

podcast

Property name	Type	Index size	Data size
itunes_explicit	Boolean	0 B	17 B
copyright	String	0 B	29 B
description	String	0 B	128 B
itunes_categories	String	236 B	35 B
itunes_image	String	0 B	89 B
itunes_new_feed_url	String	0 B	94 B
itunes_owner_email	String	242 B	38 B
itunes_owner_name	String	222 B	28 B
language	String	0 B	15 B
link	String	0 B	39 B
title	String	248 B	41 B
tunes_author	String	230 B	32 B
itunes_subtitle	Text	0 B	115 B
itunes_summary	Text	0 B	131 B

podcast_episode

Property name	Type	Index size	Data size
explicit	Boolean	198 B	10 B
pub_date	Date/Time	212 B	17 B
length	Integer	208 B	15 B
author	String	230 B	26 B
duration	String	212 B	17 B
guid	String	410 B	116 B
image	String	344 B	83 B
subtitle	String	300 B	61 B
summary	String	1.35 KB	604 B
title	String	282 B	52 B
type	String	208 B	15 B
url	String	408 B	115 B

Application

The application is completely serverless and runs by means of Google Cloud Functions

View the source code.

Deploy and Test

1. Follow the Cloud Functions quickstart guide to setup Cloud Functions for your project.

2. Clone this repository:

    git clone https://github.com/oleguris/nodejs-podcast-feed.git
    cd nodejs-podcast-feed
   

3. Ensure the Cloud Datastore API is enabled:

Click here to enable the Cloud Datastore API

1. Deploy the "getitunesrssfeed" function with an HTTP trigger:

    gcloud functions deploy getitunesrssfeed --trigger-http
   

2. Call the "getitunesrssfeed" function to list all podcasts:

    gcloud functions call getitunesrssfeed
   

   or

    curl -H "Content-Type: application/json" -X GET "https://[YOUR_REGION]-[YOUR_PROJECT_ID].cloudfunctions.net/getitunesrssfeed"
   

   • Replace [YOUR_REGION] with the region where your function is deployed.
   • Replace [YOUR_PROJECT_ID] with your Google Cloud Platform project ID.