Abstract: With the rapid development of databases and data storage technology, the cloud has emerged as a significant aspect of nowadays businesses. This embraces the necessity of the distinction between the cloud services and deployment models in order to obtain a service that fits the user demands. This paper provides current and potential cloud users with the basic knowledge of the cloud services and deployment models. In addition, this paper highlights the advantages and disadvantages of this technology, while providing the cloud user with methods to benefit from cloud services in a sufficient manner, and overcome the cloud limitations and risks.