Which statement about build arguments and environment variables is true?

Build arguments and environment variables serve distinct purposes within Docker, and understanding their scopes is crucial for effective container management.

The correct statement indicates that build arguments are accessible solely during the image build process and not available after the image is created. This means that any values defined as build arguments can be utilized to influence the image creation, such as validating configurations or setting specific build settings. However, once the image is built, these arguments do not persist into the environment of the running container.

On the other hand, environment variables can be defined within the Dockerfile using the ENV directive or passed at runtime using the -e flag in docker run. These variables do remain accessible when the container is running, allowing applications within the container to use them for configurations, secrets, or other tooling requirements.

Thus, the accurate description highlights the life cycle of build arguments as being limited to the build phase, while environment variables persist into the container’s running environment, making option D the true statement about their relationship and accessibility.