FD not for shifting gears? Complete amateur here but I took my 2021 Kona Rove Al650 to the shop today because the FD is not shifting. One of the mechanics told me that the FD on the Kona Rove is only used to adjust the chains and not actually for shifting gears. I clearly have two chainrings. I’ve never seen this system before. What is it called?
They very likely were talking about your front shifter's trim stops.
Your shifter has 3 or 4 positions despite there only being two chainrings. As you shift around in back, the angle that the chain enters the front derailleur changes. This can cause rub. The trim stops exist to change the front derailleur's position enough to eliminate the rub. In other words, when the system is set up correctly, you've got one or two stops in it that shouldn't be moving the chain. (Almost every STI now has 4 but I'm blanking on whether Claris is 3 or 4.)