SDKs

client SDK

The client SDK helps to interact with Firebase from unprivileged clients, usually a browser. It may run on Node.js but with lesser capabilities.

npm i firebase

admin SDK

The admin SDK helps to interact with Firebase from privileged environments configured with a special, privileged account called a service account. The service account belongs to the Firebase project and authenticates the environment.

The service account allows to skip the user-centric authentication workflows and to bypass the client-centric security rules.

Firebase Cloud Functions run on an environment that Google pre-configures with the proper service account.

npm i firebase-admin

The admin and client SDK APIs are similar in shape when applicable.

• release notes
• admin SDK reference

firebase cloud functions

The firebase CLI scaffolder adds the firebase-functions package as a dependency automatically when we add cloud functions to a project.

npm i firebase-functions