Besides using a single VM running separately in a Cloud infrastructure specialised orchestration frameworks can be used to start a variety of services (e.g. file server, database server) or even a larger number of identical computing nodes in a synchronised manner automatically.
The BiBiGrid Framework developed within the BiGi node of the de.NBI network provides a convenient way for highly configurable Cloud computing setups.
Furthermore, Canonicals JuJu provide easy deployment of services and cloud infrastructure on a software layer, i.e. software as a service (SaaS).