Isaac Sim & Isaac Lab

Current Installation


Version	5.1.0 (pip)
Conda Env	`isaaclab` (Python 3.11)
Launch	`conda activate isaaclab && isaacsim`

Quick Start

conda activate isaaclab
isaacsim

Must launch from a desktop session (Sunshine/Moonlight) — needs a display.

Installation Methods

Via pip (Current)

# Requires Python 3.11, GLIBC 2.35+
conda activate isaaclab
pip install "isaacsim[all,extscache]==5.1.0" --extra-index-url https://pypi.nvidia.com

Standalone (removed Feb 2026)

Standalone install at ~/isaac-sim/ removed to save 17 GB. Pip version has the same features.

Isaac Lab

Robot learning framework built on Isaac Sim.

Installation (after Isaac Sim works)

git clone https://github.com/isaac-sim/IsaacLab.git
cd IsaacLab
./isaaclab.sh --install

Isaac Sim vs Isaac Lab

	Isaac Sim	Isaac Lab
Purpose	Full simulation platform + GUI	Robot learning framework
Use	Design environments, test robots	Train RL policies at scale
Mode	Interactive GUI	Headless training
Install	pip in conda env	Separate from source

ROS 2 Bridge (bundled in Isaac Sim)

ROS 2 Jazzy libs bundled in isaacsim.ros2.bridge extension (Python 3.11)
Requires env vars to load correctly — use ~/bin/isaacsim-ros wrapper
No system ROS 2 on host — conflicts (Python 3.12 vs 3.11 ABI mismatch)
DDS handles communication between Isaac Sim and external ROS 2 nodes regardless of Python version

Foxglove Visualization

foxglove-bridge on port 8765 (container, --network host so accessible on localhost)
Connect from any browser: ws://workstation:8765 or ws://localhost:8765
Raw images too large for remote viewing — use compressed video topic instead
H.264 NVENC republisher encodes on GPU (~50KB/frame vs 2.7MB raw)
H.265 NVENC does not work with Foxglove (browser can’t decode keyframes)
NVENC requires gop_size > 1 (B-frame constraint). Use gop_size:=10

Republisher command

ros2 run image_transport republish raw foxglove --ros-args \
  -r in:=/front_stereo_camera/left/image_rect_color \
  -r out/foxglove:=/front_stereo_camera/left/compressed_video \
  -p out.foxglove.encoder:=h264_nvenc \
  -p out.foxglove.gop_size:=10 \
  -p out.foxglove.bit_rate:=5000000 \
  -p out.foxglove.qmax:=10 \
  -p out.foxglove.encoder_av_options:='forced-idr:1,preset:p1,tune:ll'

Software Versions (February 2026)

Component	Version	Notes
Isaac Sim	5.1.0	Pip install in conda env `isaaclab`
Isaac Sim	6.0	Early dev preview only
Isaac Lab	2.3.2	Separate install from source

Troubleshooting

Isaac Sim won’t start

# Check DISPLAY variable
echo $DISPLAY  # Should be :0

# Check GPU
nvidia-smi

# Check logs
ls ~/.nvidia-omniverse/logs/Kit/Isaac-Sim/*/kit_*.log

Slow first launch

Shader compilation takes 5-10 minutes on first run. Subsequent launches are faster.

GPU not being used

# Check GPU memory usage while Isaac Sim runs
watch -n 1 nvidia-smi

File Locations

~/.nvidia-omniverse/logs/       # Isaac Sim logs
~/.local/share/ov/data/Kit/     # Kit config and layout files
~/IsaacLab/                     # Isaac Lab source

References — The Three Doc Sites

Site	What it is	Follow for install?
Isaac Lab	Robot learning framework (includes Isaac Sim pip install)	YES — our Isaac Sim + Isaac Lab install source
Isaac Sim	Simulator docs (GUI, sensors, ROS bridge config, extensions)	NO for install. Reference only
Isaac ROS	GPU-accelerated ROS 2 perception packages	YES — our Isaac ROS Docker install source

Isaac Lab handles Isaac Sim installation. Isaac Sim docs are reference only — don’t follow their install guides. Isaac ROS uses Docker (no host ROS 2).