KubeOne(1)

📦 version 1.12.3, in arch rolling

💅 KubeOne(1) — bestie's guide to kubeone apply

okay so this is the KubeOne(1) manual, and specifically the glow-up edition of kubeone-apply. she's the main character of cluster management ngl 🎀

✨ NAME ✨

kubeone-apply — reconcile the cluster. like, make reality match the vibe check ✅

🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

kubeone apply [flags]

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

Reconcile (Install/Upgrade/Repair/Restore) a Kubernetes cluster on machines you already have. it's giving "make it match the manifest," and honestly? iconic. 💖

so about MachineDeployments — they get initialized, but by default they will not get modified. literally hands off. if you do want them touched, go look at --upgrade-machine-deployments (iykyk 👀).

this command takes the KubeOne manifest, which contains the info about hosts and how the cluster should be provisioned. and — plot twist — you can also source the host info straight from Terraform output using the --tfjson flag. no cap, that's a whole vibe. ✨

💅 OPTIONS 💅

  • -y, --auto-approve[=false] — auto approve the plan. no "yes I'm sure" moment, she just goes. 🫶
  • -b, --backup="" — path to where the PKI backup .tar.gz file should be placed. default: the location of the cluster config file. 🎀
  • --create-machine-deployments[=true] — create MachineDeployments objects.
  • --force-install[=false] — use force to install new binary versions. ok so this is (!dangerous!) — the manpage literally put an exclamation mark, respect it. 😭
  • --force-upgrade[=false] — force start the upgrade process.
  • -h, --help[=false] — help for apply. the classic.
  • --no-init[=false] — don't initialize the cluster (only install binaries). just the binaries, nothing else, periodt.
  • --prune-images[=false] — delete unused container images on control plane and static worker nodes. spring cleaning energy 🧹✨
  • --rotate-encryption-key[=false] — rotate the Encryption Provider encryption key. 🔐
  • --upgrade-machine-deployments[=false] — upgrade MachineDeployments objects. the one from earlier? yeah, this is her.

👑 OPTIONS INHERITED FROM PARENT COMMANDS 👑

these come from the parent, so you didn't have to ask — they're just there, like a good friend holding your iced coffee. 🍓

  • -c, --credentials="" — file to source credentials and secrets from.
  • -d, --debug[=false] — debug output with stacktrace. for when you need to see everything. 💀
  • -l, --log-format="text" — format for logging.
  • -m, --manifest="./kubeone.yaml" — path to the KubeOne config. the blueprint fr fr.
  • -t, --tfjson="" — source for terraform output in JSON. to read from stdin. if the path is a file, its contents will be used. if the path is a dictionary, terraform output -json is executed in this path. yes, three whole behaviours, she contains multitudes. 🌈
  • -v, --verbose[=false] — verbose output. talk to me bestie 🗣️

🌟 EXAMPLE 🌟

kubeone apply -m mycluster.yaml -t terraformoutput.json

look at that. manifest plus terraform output. chef's kiss. 👑

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

  • kubeone(1) — the parent, the origin story, the blueprint 💜

🎀 HISTORY 🎀

8-Feb-2026 — Auto generated by spf13/cobra. not me being auto generated 😭 she's literally built different.

ok that's the whole thing — every flag, every default, every path, all of it. go forth and reconcile responsibly, and maybe don't touch --force-install unless you mean it 💅

auto generated by spf13/cobra · Feb 2026 · KubeOne(1) — mwah, that's a wrap, ily, go slay your cluster 💖✨🦋

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