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Multi-Machine ROS2 Networking

Configure LAN IPs

Section titled “Configure LAN IPs”

In order for machines to communicate, they must be on the same subnet. After connecting the computer to the network over ethernet cable, run

ip a

to view a list of network interfaces. Look for one that starts with eth or en. You can view the local ip that was assigned, it will likely be 192.168.1.X\24

24 is the network mask.

To set your local ip, click on ‘wired connected’->‘wired settings’->‘settings gear’->‘ipv4’

Set the IPv4 Method to “Manual” and set the IP to 192.168.1.X. Do this for all computers. (X is usually some number 1-100, but definitely ess than 256)

Set the netmask to 24 or 255.255.255.0 (same thing)

Gateway doesn’t matter.

Configure ROS_DOMAIN_ID

Section titled “Configure ROS_DOMAIN_ID”

In order to prevent accidental cross talk between machines running ROS2 on the same network, both machines must set the same ROS_DOMAIN_ID environmental variable.

Link to ROS2 Docs

  1. in ~/.zshrc, add the line:
export ROS_DOMAIN_ID=X

Where X is some agreed upon value.

  1. Close and reopen all terminals running ROS

  2. Now any topics on either computer should appear on the other