🚀 Prebuilt Binaries Support
We're excited to announce that rclnodejs now ships with prebuilt native binaries for Ubuntu Linux, significantly reducing installation time and eliminating the need for build tools in most cases.
What's New
- Faster Installation: No more waiting for
node-gyp
compilation—prebuilt binaries are ready to use instantly - Simplified Setup: No need to install build essentials, Python, or other compilation dependencies
- Multi-Platform Support: Prebuilt binaries available for both x64 and arm64 architectures
- ROS2 Compatibility: Supports Ubuntu 22.04 (Jammy) and 24.04 (Noble) with ROS2 Humble, Jazzy, Kilted
Supported Configurations
Ubuntu Version | ROS2 Distributions | Architectures |
---|---|---|
22.04 (Jammy) | Humble | x64, arm64 |
24.04 (Noble) | Jazzy, Kilted | x64, arm64 |
Force Build from Source
If you need to build from source (for debugging or custom configurations), set the environment variable:
export RCLNODEJS_FORCE_BUILD=1
npm install rclnodejs
Platform Notes
- Linux (Ubuntu): Prebuilt binaries supported ✅
- Windows/macOS: Automatically builds from source (as before)
This enhancement makes rclnodejs more accessible and production-ready, especially for CI/CD pipelines and containerized deployments.
These are changes for rclnodejs v1.5.2 (2025-10-13).
- Update outdated Dockerfile (#1262)
- Add a manipulator demo using Electron + rclnodejs (#1264)
- Add tutorial for service introspection (#1266)
- Add tutorial for type description service (#1268)
- Add tutorial for content filtering subscription (#1270)
- Add README for tutorials for indexing (#1272)
- Add README for electron demos for indexing (#1274)
- Add README for typescript demos for indexing (#1276)
- Update depenencies (#1278)
- Update author email (#1280)
- Update README for topics demo (#1282)
- Integrate rclnodejs/ref-napi into rclnodejs (#1285)
- Leverage prebuildify to provide prebuilt addon for npm package (#1287)