haskell / haskell/cabal

Default-generated config is a bit of a mess

Open
#6,017 3 comments 0 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub
cabal-install: cmd/user-config type: bug type: enhancement
Dominant language
Haskell
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Forks
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Avg merge
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Merged PRs (30d)
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Description

User config file generated by default is a bit of a mess rn:

```
$ cabal --config=cabal-config user-config init
$ cat cabal-config
```

E.g. there's both a `compiler` and a `with-compiler` field, `write-ghc-environment-files` lacks a default, there are things like `exact-configuration` that should be hidden, etc. Looks like this started when `new-install` landed.

We should also think about putting more stuff into separate sections.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Start by running `cabal --config=cabal-config user-config init` and inspecting the generated `cabal-config`. Compare the `compiler`, `with-compiler`, `write-ghc-environment-files`, and `exact-configuration` fields to determine which defaults and visibility are appropriate. Done means the generated configuration is organized into sensible sections without redundant or inappropriate fields.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
haskell
Domain
cli
Issue type
Refactor
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Needs clarification
Newbie friendliness
30/100

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