ROSStacks

ROSStacks is a packaging construct from the early ROS (Robot Operating System) ecosystem used to group related packages into a single distributable unit called a stack. A stack provides a cohesive release and management boundary for a set of ROS packages that share a common purpose, dependency relationships, and lifecycle. The concept aimed to simplify distribution, versioning, and deployment across ROS environments.

A stack is typically described by a manifest file named stack.xml that lists the stack’s name, version, license, maintainers, and the packages it contains. The manifest also specifies build and runtime dependencies on other stacks or packages. Within the stack directory, individual ROS packages reside, each with its own package manifest detailing metadata and dependencies. This structure enables developers to release and install a group of packages together as a unit.

Build and tooling for stacks relied on the rosbuild-based workflow. Tools such as rosinstall were used to fetch stacks from version control repositories, while rospack and rosdep supported dependency discovery and resolution. Building a stack commonly required configuring the ROS_PACKAGE_PATH to include the stack’s location and invoking the appropriate build commands (e.g., rosmake).

Lifecycle and status: Stacks were central to ROS 1’s packaging model, but the approach has largely been superseded by the shift to the catkin build system and the move toward standalone packages and workspaces. In modern ROS practice, the stack concept is not a primary organizing principle, and packaging tends to emphasize individual packages and metapackages rather than grouped stacks.

See also: ROS, rosbuild, rosstack, rosinstall, rospack, catkin, metapackages.