ShadowHound Environment Variables Reference¶

Purpose¶

Comprehensive reference for all environment variables used throughout the ShadowHound stack, their relationships, and configuration guidelines.

Prerequisites¶

Understanding of shell environment variable syntax
Familiarity with .env file format
Knowledge of ShadowHound deployment architecture

Overview¶

This document clarifies the environment variables used throughout the ShadowHound stack and their relationships.

Primary Variables (User-Facing)¶

`GO2_IP`¶

Purpose: Robot's IP address (WiFi or Ethernet)
Set in: .env file
Used by: All ShadowHound scripts and components

# For WebRTC mode (WiFi)
GO2_IP=192.168.1.103

# For CycloneDDS mode (Ethernet)
GO2_IP=192.168.10.167

Important: This is the ONLY IP variable you need to configure!

`CONN_TYPE`¶

Purpose: Connection protocol for Unitree Go2
Set in: .env file
Values: webrtc (WiFi) or cyclonedds (Ethernet)
Default: webrtc (if not set)

# For DIMOS high-level commands (sit, stand, wave)
CONN_TYPE=webrtc

# For basic teleop only (no high-level commands)
CONN_TYPE=cyclonedds

`ROS_DOMAIN_ID`¶

Purpose: ROS2 network isolation
Set in: .env file
Default: 0

# Standard domain (use unless you have conflicts)
ROS_DOMAIN_ID=0

# Change if you have multiple ROS2 systems on same network
ROS_DOMAIN_ID=42

`RMW_IMPLEMENTATION`¶

Purpose: ROS2 middleware implementation
Set in: .env file
Default: rmw_cyclonedds_cpp

# Recommended for best performance
RMW_IMPLEMENTATION=rmw_cyclonedds_cpp

Internal Variables (Auto-Configured)¶

`ROBOT_IP`¶

Purpose: SDK-specific variable (go2_ros2_sdk compatibility)
Set by: start.sh and test scripts automatically
Derived from: GO2_IP

# Automatically set by scripts:
export ROBOT_IP=$GO2_IP

You do NOT need to set this manually! It's automatically exported from GO2_IP.

Why both exist? - GO2_IP: ShadowHound convention (clear, descriptive) - ROBOT_IP: go2_ros2_sdk convention (from upstream SDK) - Scripts bridge the two automatically

Variable Relationships¶

User Config (.env)              Internal (Auto-set)
─────────────────              ───────────────────
GO2_IP=192.168.1.103     →     ROBOT_IP=192.168.1.103
                                (exported by scripts)

CONN_TYPE=webrtc         →     Used by SDK driver
                                (passed to launch file)

ROS_DOMAIN_ID=0          →     ROS2 network domain
                                (ROS environment)

Configuration Files¶

`.env` (Primary Configuration)¶

# Robot address - SET THIS!
GO2_IP=192.168.1.103

# Connection mode - IMPORTANT!
CONN_TYPE=webrtc

# ROS2 settings
ROS_DOMAIN_ID=0
RMW_IMPLEMENTATION=rmw_cyclonedds_cpp

# OpenAI API
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-your-key-here

Shell Environment Setup¶

Use your standard .env directly and export variables in your shell when needed. We do not recommend generating bespoke environment files.

Common Patterns¶

Launching with Environment¶

# start.sh automatically:
# 1. Loads .env
# 2. Exports GO2_IP
# 3. Sets ROBOT_IP=$GO2_IP
# 4. Passes to SDK launch file

./start.sh

Manual Launch (Advanced)¶

# If launching SDK manually
export GO2_IP=192.168.1.103
export ROBOT_IP=$GO2_IP  # SDK compatibility
export CONN_TYPE=webrtc
export ROS_DOMAIN_ID=0

ros2 launch go2_robot_sdk robot.launch.py

Testing Commands¶

# All scripts handle ROBOT_IP automatically
./scripts/test_webrtc_direct.sh

# Just set GO2_IP in .env and you're good!

Environment Precedence¶

Command line (highest priority) bash GO2_IP=192.168.1.200 ./start.sh
Shell environment bash export GO2_IP=192.168.1.200 ./start.sh
.env file (standard) bash # .env contains GO2_IP=192.168.1.103 ./start.sh # Uses 192.168.1.103
Script defaults (lowest priority) bash # If GO2_IP not set anywhere # Scripts use: ${GO2_IP:-192.168.1.103}

Troubleshooting¶

"Cannot reach robot"¶

# Check what IP is being used
echo $GO2_IP
echo $ROBOT_IP

# Verify it's correct
ping $GO2_IP

"ROBOT_IP vs GO2_IP mismatch"¶

# This should NEVER happen - they should always match
# If you see this, the scripts have a bug

echo "GO2_IP: $GO2_IP"
echo "ROBOT_IP: $ROBOT_IP"

# They should be identical

"Which one should I set?"¶

# ONLY set GO2_IP in .env
# ROBOT_IP is automatically derived

# .env file:
GO2_IP=192.168.1.103     # ✅ Set this
# ROBOT_IP=...           # ❌ Don't set this

SDK Launch File Reference¶

The go2_ros2_sdk launch file reads these variables:

# From go2_robot_sdk/launch/robot.launch.py
self.robot_token = os.getenv('ROBOT_TOKEN', '')
self.robot_ip = os.getenv('ROBOT_IP', '')      # ← SDK reads ROBOT_IP
self.conn_type = os.getenv('CONN_TYPE', 'webrtc')

Our scripts ensure ROBOT_IP is set from GO2_IP:

# start.sh line 782
export ROBOT_IP=$go2_ip  # where go2_ip=${GO2_IP:-192.168.10.167}

Best Practices¶

✅ DO:¶

Set GO2_IP in .env file
Set CONN_TYPE in .env file
Use ./start.sh to launch (handles everything)
Re-source or export from your standard .env in other terminals as needed

❌ DON'T:¶

Set ROBOT_IP manually (scripts do this)
Mix different IP values for GO2_IP and ROBOT_IP
Forget to update GO2_IP when switching networks
Use Ethernet IP when in WebRTC mode

Quick Reference Card¶

Variable	Where to Set	Purpose	Example
`GO2_IP`	`.env`	Robot IP address	`192.168.1.103`
`CONN_TYPE`	`.env`	Connection protocol	`webrtc` or `cyclonedds`
`ROS_DOMAIN_ID`	`.env`	ROS2 network ID	`0`
`RMW_IMPLEMENTATION`	`.env`	ROS2 middleware	`rmw_cyclonedds_cpp`
`ROBOT_IP`	Auto-set	SDK compatibility	Same as `GO2_IP`
`OPENAI_API_KEY`	`.env`	LLM API key	`sk-...`

Summary¶

One simple rule:

Set GO2_IP in .env, everything else is automatic!

The scripts handle the ROBOT_IP translation for SDK compatibility, so you never need to think about it.

WebRTC Configuration: docs/webrtc_configuration.md
WebRTC Testing: docs/networking/webrtc_direct_test.md
Environment Setup: .env.development, .env.production

Validation¶

[ ] Legacy guidance reviewed for accuracy and converted to the new workflow where applicable.
[ ] Links updated to use vault-friendly wikilinks or confirmed for external references.
[ ] Outstanding migration work captured as tasks in the backlog.

References¶

Knowledge Base Index