EX280 Application Deployment And Lifecycle Practice Question
A developer has created a Kustomization file that applies a namespace prefix and some patches to base Kubernetes manifests. How can the developer apply these manifests to an OpenShift cluster using standard oc tooling without installing standalone Kustomize?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
oc apply -k ./directory
The oc apply command includes built-in support for Kustomize via the -k flag, which processes a directory containing a kustomization.yaml file.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
oc create -f kustomization.yaml
Why it's wrong here
oc create -f expects standard resource manifests, not a kustomization directory.
- ✗
oc run -k ./directory
Why it's wrong here
oc run creates a single pod or deployment, not a Kustomize overlay bundle.
- ✓
oc apply -k ./directory
Why this is correct
oc apply -k directs the client to build and apply the Kustomize package from the directory.
- ✗
oc kustomize apply ./directory
Why it's wrong here
oc kustomize only outputs the generated YAML to stdout; it does not apply it directly unless piped.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed August 2026 · checked against the official Red Hat exam blueprint
This EX280 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Red Hat certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the EX280 exam.