RouterOS /app YAML Format (7.21+)

RouterOS 7.21 introduced the /app path (built-in app listing and management). The full YAML app creation feature (/app/add) appeared in 7.22 (first seen in 7.22beta5). Think of it as MikroTik's opinionated alternative to docker-compose — but it is NOT docker-compose, with significant differences.

What /app Is

The /app subsystem lets users define one or more containers as a single "application" in YAML. RouterOS parses the YAML, creates containers, volumes, networks, and config files, then manages the lifecycle.

Key concepts:

• Each /app is defined by a YAML document with services, configs, volumes, and networks
• The YAML is loaded into RouterOS via CLI (/app/add yaml-url=...) or REST API
• Built-in apps ship with RouterOS (visible at GET /rest/app)
• Custom apps can be added from URLs or inline YAML
• App stores (app-store-urls=) provide curated collections

Critical Differences from docker-compose