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How to run an ad-hoc interactive container

It is sometimes useful to be able to run a random container image for debugging inside a project. oc run allows it by running in a single command:

$ oc run pod-name -it --rm --image=bash --restart=Never
If you do not see a command prompt, try pressing enter.
bash-5.1$
  • pod-name can be any given name that does not exist already in the namespace.
  • -it tells oc to create an interactive session.
  • --rm will make the Pod to be deleted after the session is over.
  • --image=bash is the name of the image, in this case library/bash. It can be any given image, either public library image like bash, or a purpose build private image.
  • --restart=Never will tell OpenShift to not restart the Pod when the session is over.
  • If you would like to start a Pod with a different command than its default, you can do so by adding -- [COMMAND] [args...] [flags] at the end (e.g. oc run pod-name -it --rm --image=python --restart=Never -- bash).
Last update: October 31, 2023