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The front derailleur, alongside the rear derailleur, is essential for selecting the gear ratio on a bicycle with a derailleur system. Its function is to shift the chain onto one of the 2 or 3 chainrings, thereby transferring pedaling power to the rear wheel as efficiently as possible.

The front derailleur is operated via the shift levers mounted on the handlebars. This is done through a Bowden cable (shift cable).

Front derailleurs come in various designs:

- "Top Pull" models, where the cable approaches from above
- "Down Pull" or "Bottom Pull" front derailleurs, where the cable is routed from below
- "Dual Pull" types, which allow the cable to come from either below or above

The required type depends on how the bike frame is designed for cable routing. On road bikes, the cable routing usually comes from below, while on mountain bikes, both types of cable routing can be found.

Additionally, front derailleurs are categorized into DownSwing or TopSwing models, based on the location of the mounting clamp. On DownSwing front derailleurs, the cage is positioned below the clamp, whereas on TopSwing models, it is positioned above.