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Getting started with ROS and Docker Compose

Description: This tutorial walks you through using Docker Compose with ROS containers.

Keywords: ROS, Docker, Compose

Tutorial Level: BEGINNER

Compose is a tool for defining and running complex applications with Docker. With Compose, you define a multi-container application in a single file, then spin your application up in a single command which does everything that needs to be done to get it running. So basically, this will help shorten what you'd need to type into the Docker CLI to achieve the equivalent (concept is very similar to what roslaunch is for ROS). Before we get ahead of ourselves, its highly recommended to look over the Official Docker Compose Documentation to get familiar with what it's good for and what it can do, then come on back here to see how we can apply this tool to ROS specifically.

Installing Compose

See https://docs.docker.com/compose/install/

Using Compose

Making ROS Compose files

Example compose file

version: '2'

networks:
  ros:
    driver: bridge

services:
  ros-master:
    image: ros:kinetic-ros-core
    command: stdbuf -o L roscore
    networks:
      - ros
    restart: always

  talker:
    image: ros:kinetic-ros-core
    depends_on:
      - ros-master
    environment:
      - "ROS_MASTER_URI=http://ros-master:11311"
    command: stdbuf -o L rostopic pub /chatter std_msgs/String "hello" -r 1
    networks:
      - ros
    restart: always

  listener:
    image: ros:kinetic-ros-core
    depends_on:
      - ros-master
    environment:
      - "ROS_MASTER_URI=http://ros-master:11311"
    command: stdbuf -o L rostopic echo /chatter
    networks:
      - ros
    restart: always

Running ROS Compose files

docker-compose up

or to run in background

docker-compose up -d

Stopping ROS Compose files

docker-compose stop

Using GUI's with compose

If you want to have some sort of GUI starting with your compose you will need to add a container as described in Using GUI's with docker.

Extending the example above, one way is to share your local X11-server with the container, log in as yourself and use your GUI as you like:

viz:
  image: osrf/ros:kinetic-desktop-full
  container_name: ros_visualizer
  depends_on:
    - ros-master
  networks:
    - ros
  environment:
    - "ROS_MASTER_URI=http://ros-master:11311"
    - "DISPLAY"
    - "QT_X11_NO_MITSHM=1" #fix some QT bugs
  #share your user to the container in order to access your x11
  user: 1000:1000 #adapt as needed!
  volumes: 
    #share your x11 socket and permissions to the container
    - /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix:rw
    - /etc/group:/etc/group:ro
    - /etc/passwd:/etc/passwd:ro
    - /etc/shadow:/etc/shadow:ro
    - /etc/sudoers:/etc/sudoers:ro
    - /etc/sudoers.d:/etc/sudoers.d:ro
    - /home/<your_user>:/home/<your_user>:rw #share your home with write permissions
  command: rqt

Defining your users UID and GID (as well as other variables) can be done with an .env-file (see Official env-file documentation):

UGID=1000:1000

and changing above example from

user: 1000:1000

to

user: ${UGID}