raspi-config options have changed

[lurch]

(and may still be changing)
https://www.raspberrypi.com/documentation/computers/configuration.html#list-of-options

[lurch]

@spl237 tells me that the contents of the "Advanced" menu will vary depending on which model of Pi is being used, and also on which graphics stack is being used. He says that "most users" shouldn't be changing these settings, and therefore we shouldn't mention them in our documentation. The only options of raspi-config that we ought to be documenting are those which are also displayed in the "GUI version" i.e. the "Raspberry Pi Configuration" program.

[aallan]

I use the Advanced Menu pretty much every time I set up a Pi. It will be documented.

[spl237]

You shouldn't be using it. What are you doing in the Advanced Menu that needs doing every time you set up a Pi?

[spl237]

To go into more detail here...

The graphical Raspberry Pi Configuration utility offers every option in raspi-config with the exception of those in the Advanced Settings menu. This is deliberate, because use of options in the Advanced menu involves things which can potentially stop the Pi from working as intended, or for experimental features, or for us to suggest things to users with specific problems which may give us a clue as to what is behind their particular strange problem.

The average user should not be touching anything in that menu, and indeed should be very heavily discouraged from doing so. (Actually, the average user shouldn't even be using raspi-config these days - they should be accessing those settings from the GUI app.)

The Advanced Settings menu is the equivalent of the service menu on your TV. That isn't documented in the user manual, because the manufacturer does not want people fiddling with it. If you insist that the advanced menu must be documented - with which I disagree quite strongly - then it must be done in a fashion whereby huge red warning notices are stuck all over it saying something to the effect of "don't fiddle with this - if you do, you are on your own; don't come crying to us", and such documentation should be clearly distinct from that for "general users".

And I would genuinely like to know what in the Advanced menu you use every time you set up a Pi, because if there is something in there you do actually need to change every time, then we should consider moving that setting somewhere else.

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[aallan]

Still a thing.

[jehlers42]

@spl237 My PR'd changes to the getting started guide has a quick mention of the menu, basically calling it out before the user would hit "Write": "Optionally, you can click the cog wheel icon to open the <> menu."

We also call out a few times about the need to use the advanced menu to create users for headless setups. Granted I'm still new to this whole Pi thing so I've mostly been going with what already existed in the guide so I'm not sure how needed that info truly is.

I do tend to agree that "service only" type situations shouldn't be fully documented, but this one seems easily-exposed to our users since it's a simple cogwheel icon on the installation GUI. Curious users are likely to click it and potentially get themselves in trouble. Ideally the UX would be the first line of defence here, with a "are you sure you want to do this?" confirmation dialog or tooltip.

Otherwise my suggestion would be a warning box like you recommend with a link to a doc that does explain the menu, but also makes it very clear the risks associated with changing those settings.