Because VMware provided images can quickly become out-of-date and because not all hardware drivers are included, VMware allows you to create your own custom ESXi images for all types of deployment methods. VMware customers can create custom images by slipstreaming the latest hardware drivers, VMware patches, hardware CIM providers or third-party plug-ins, solutions or agents. To create customized images, use the vSphere ESXi Image Builder CLI to provide a set of commandlets that package together vSphere installation bundles (VIBs) into new system images. These custom system images can be configured as depot packages for a vSphere Auto Deploy mechanism, or saved as ISO images for deployment either through a remote KVM or burned onto a recordable CD for manual installation.

Traditionally, hardware vendors such as HP, Cisco, and Dell have provided pre-packed vendor-specific images that include all component-specific drivers for newly released hardware, hardware CIM providers (Common Information Model providers allow management functions, such as reporting health monitoring information), and vendor-specific tools. In some cases, the use of these vendor-specific images might negate the requirement to build your own service provider custom images.