What must be installed to add firmware and drivers add-ons to an image in vSphere Lifecycle Manager?

To add firmware and driver add-ons to an image in vSphere Lifecycle Manager, the Hardware Support Manager plug-in must be installed. This plug-in is essential because it provides functionality for managing hardware compatibility and allows you to integrate firmware updates and driver packages directly into the image. This ensures that the software environment aligns and is compatible with the physical hardware on which the vSphere infrastructure is running.

The Hardware Support Manager helps streamline updates and maintain optimal performance and stability across the environment by facilitating the integration of the latest hardware drivers and firmware into the image profiles. This functionality is pivotal for ensuring that vSphere hosts operate with the most current and supported hardware configurations, thus enhancing system reliability and performance.

Without the Hardware Support Manager plug-in, you would lack the necessary tools to effectively incorporate and manage these crucial updates within vSphere Lifecycle Manager, leading to potential compatibility issues and decreased system performance over time.