There are four primary process methods for coffee cherries: 

1. Washed or Wet process is the practice of removing the mucilage from the coffee using machines called de-pulpers only when the coffee cherry is at its ripest. Then the bean goes through a soaking period where they check for coffee density removing any floating seeds for quality control. These beans then end up in drying beds in the sun to dry out. 
2. Natural or Dry processes have been the traditional processes of coffee cherries since the 9th Century, when coffee was first discovered in Ethiopia. It is now one of the most common ways of preparing coffee. Ripe coffee cherries are placed in drying beds in the sun to dry for approximately 3-6 weeks. While in the sun, the cherries go through a natural fermentation phase where bacteria break down the sugar in the mucilage, and complex flavors and aromas get infused into the seeds. 
3. Honey processed coffee is a method that uses the Natural and Wet processes partially together where the skin gets removed from the cherry, and the mucilage is left with the seed to dry; this gives the coffee very complex flavors similar to both Wet and Dry processes.
4. Semi-Washed or Wet hulled process. In this processing method, the skin is removed, and the seeds, while still containing most of its mucilage, instead of going to the drying phase, are then moved to tanks/plastic containers to ferment. Subsequently, they go through a hulling process, where all remaining mucilage gets removed before going to the drying beds to dry in the sun.