VTK Modules

VTK is organized into a modular architecture. Each module provides a specific set of functionality and declares its dependencies.

Module System

VTK's module system allows you to:

• Build only the modules you need
• Manage dependencies automatically
• Create custom modules that integrate with VTK
• Reduce binary size by excluding unused functionality

Core Module Groups

• Common — Fundamental data types, math, and system utilities
• Filters — Data processing algorithms
• IO — File format readers and writers
• Imaging — Image processing filters
• Interaction — Widgets and interaction styles
• Rendering — Rendering infrastructure and backends
• Views — High-level visualization views
• Charts — 2D charting framework

Finding Modules

Each VTK class belongs to a specific module. To find which module a class belongs to:

• Check the class documentation
• Use vtk_module_find_package() in CMake
• Browse the module listing in the VTK source tree

Custom Modules

Developers can create custom VTK modules that:

• Extend VTK with new algorithms
• Integrate third-party libraries
• Are discovered and built by VTK's build system