Cloud computing provides on-demand access to shared computing resources like servers, storage, databases, networking, software and analytics over the internet. It has essential characteristics like self-service, broad network access, resource pooling and rapid elasticity. There are three main service models - Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS). Cloud deployment models include private, public and hybrid clouds. While cloud computing provides advantages like scalability and reduced costs, it also poses security, performance and connectivity risks if not implemented properly.