cordless 0.8.0

Serverless Discord interactions framework for AWS Lambda

cordless

A serverless Discord interactions framework for AWS Lambda.

Build Discord bots without running a server — just functions deployed to Lambda. Discord sends HTTP interactions to your endpoint; you return a JSON response. No WebSockets, no gateway, no persistent runtime.

Discord → API Gateway → Lambda → cordless → your handlers → response

---

install

pip install cordless

quickstart

import os
from cordless import Cordless

bot = Cordless(public_key=os.environ["DISCORD_PUBLIC_KEY"])

@bot.command("ping", description="Replies with pong")
async def ping(ctx):
    await ctx.send("pong")

def handler(event, context):
    return bot.handle(event)

Deploy as lambda_function.py and point Discord's Interactions Endpoint URL at your function's URL (via API Gateway or a Lambda function URL).

---

request verification

Every request from Discord is signed with Ed25519. Pass your application's public key (from the Developer Portal → General Information) to Cordless() and every incoming request is verified automatically — invalid signatures return 401 before your code runs.

bot = Cordless(public_key=os.environ["DISCORD_PUBLIC_KEY"])

Omitting public_key skips verification. Fine for local testing, never do it in production. PING interactions (sent when you first configure your endpoint) are answered automatically.

---

commands

@bot.command("hello", description="Says hello")
async def hello(ctx):
    await ctx.send("Hello!")

Commands with options:

@bot.command(
    "echo",
    description="Repeats text back to you",
    options=[
        {"name": "text", "description": "Text to repeat", "type": 3, "required": True},
    ],
)
async def echo(ctx):
    await ctx.send(ctx.options["text"])

Options land on ctx.options as a plain {name: value} dict.

buttons

@bot.button("confirm")
async def confirm(ctx):
    await ctx.edit(f"Confirmed (button: {ctx.custom_id})")

ephemeral replies

@bot.command("secret", description="Only you can see this")
async def secret(ctx):
    await ctx.send("just for you", ephemeral=True)

---

registering commands

@bot.command(...) wires up local dispatch — Discord also needs to know your commands exist. Use the CLI after deploying:

export DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN=...

cordless register app:bot                        # global — up to 1 hour to propagate
cordless register app:bot --guild-id 123456789   # single guild, instant

Pass MODULE:ATTRIBUTE pointing at your Cordless() instance.

No bot user? Authenticate with client credentials instead:

export DISCORD_CLIENT_ID=...
export DISCORD_CLIENT_SECRET=...
cordless register app:bot

Or call it from code:

bot.sync_commands(bot_token=os.environ["DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN"])
bot.sync_commands(client_id=..., client_secret=..., guild_id="123456789")

---

deploying the layer

cordless has no compiled dependencies. Package it as a Lambda layer and attach it to your function in one step:

cordless upload --function my-discord-bot
cordless upload --function my-discord-bot --region eu-west-1

Uses the AWS CLI under the hood — your existing credentials, profile, and region config all apply.

---

context reference

Attributes

ctx.options	Command options as {name: value}
ctx.custom_id	Custom ID of the button that was clicked
ctx.user	User who triggered the interaction
ctx.guild_id	Guild ID, or None in DMs
ctx.channel_id	Channel ID
ctx.interaction_id	Interaction ID
ctx.token	Interaction token
ctx.interaction	Raw interaction payload

Methods

await ctx.send(msg, *, ephemeral=False)	Reply with a message
await ctx.edit(msg)	Edit the original message (button handlers)
await ctx.defer()	Acknowledge within 3 s, respond later