kubectl patch deployment command returns “no change” message

When running VIP AuthHub in Google Cloud, and running the command:

# kubectl patch deployment -n ingress ingress-nginx-controller -p '{"spec": {"replicas": 2}}'

to update the ingress pod to set a replica, the command return message:

"deployment.apps/ingress-nginx-controller patched (no change)

It seems to have no effect.

When running the same command to upgrade the Vanity Nginx, it doesn’t return a “no change” message.

This happens for the Nginx for the admin services, which has no replica yet.