Defending against f2 pawn attack

I come across this situation all the time... What is the best way to defend against it?

Why not 0-0?

o-o,and pd4 next

black is not going for f2 if white o-o, he may play pa6 or pd6 or nc6 or o-o.

5.0-0 is surely enough good, and the same goes for 5.d4 ed4 6.Na4.

Thanks!

I think 0-0 or d4 should be fine

Is there no other defense than castling for this situation. If you don't castle almost immediately in the game, it's too late. Really, after so many thousands of games played, I would have expected more alternatives.

I realise this is an old thread, but if white castles and black takes f2 with bishop or knight, white ends up without a rook and a king a little exposed. Would this be a good trade off for black?

Bad for black - the 2 minor pieces are generally better than a rook and pawn, even if they’re both 6 points of material, and white would be way ahead in development. The exposed king isn’t a big issue since it can just move back to g1.