What is the purpose of the oc apply -f command?

• A. It deletes resources defined in YAML.
• B. It builds a container image from source.
• C. It applies a YAML/JSON manifest declaratively, creating or updating resources to match the desired state.
• D. It creates a new namespace.

Answer: (C)

Applying declarative configuration to the cluster is what this command is for. You describe the desired state of one or more resources in a YAML or JSON manifest and use this command to enforce that state on the OpenShift cluster. If a resource described in the file doesn’t exist, it is created. If it already exists, its fields are updated to match what’s in the manifest, so the actual state converges toward the desired state. This makes the operation idempotent—running it again with the same file will not recreate resources or introduce unintended changes, only bring the cluster closer to the manifest’s specification. You can include multiple resources in a single file, and OpenShift will apply them all in one pass. This is different from actions like building container images, deleting resources, or replacing whole objects; its purpose is to declaratively manage and synchronize resources to match the declared configuration.