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Data Transmission Service:Cross-border and cross-region instances

Last Updated:Mar 28, 2026

Data Transmission Service (DTS) classifies each instance as same-region, cross-region, or cross-border based on where the source and destination databases are located. Knowing your instance type helps you plan network connectivity and anticipate billing differences before you configure a task.

Region groups

DTS groups all regions into two categories:

  • Regions in China: the Chinese mainland, China (Hong Kong), China (Macao), and China (Taiwan)

  • Regions outside China: all other regions

Instance types

The instance type is determined by the combination of source and destination regions.

Source regionDestination regionInstance type
Chinese mainlandChinese mainland (same region)Same-region
Chinese mainlandChinese mainland (different region)Cross-region
Chinese mainlandChina (Hong Kong), China (Macao), China (Taiwan), or outside ChinaCross-border
China (Hong Kong)Chinese mainlandCross-border
China (Hong Kong)China (Hong Kong)Same-region
China (Hong Kong)China (Macao), China (Taiwan), or outside ChinaCross-region
China (Macao)Chinese mainlandCross-border
China (Macao)China (Macao)Same-region
China (Macao)China (Hong Kong), China (Taiwan), or outside ChinaCross-region
China (Taiwan)Chinese mainlandCross-border
China (Taiwan)China (Taiwan)Same-region
China (Taiwan)China (Hong Kong), China (Macao), or outside ChinaCross-region
Outside ChinaChinese mainlandCross-border
Outside ChinaOutside China (same region)Same-region
Outside ChinaChina (Hong Kong), China (Macao), China (Taiwan), or outside China (different region)Cross-region

The rule in short: a cross-border instance has its source and destination on opposite sides of the China border. A cross-region instance has both ends on the same side of the border but in different regions. A same-region instance has both ends in the same region.

Examples

ScenarioSourceDestinationInstance type
Migrate within the Chinese mainlandChina (Beijing)China (Shanghai)Cross-region
Migrate from the Chinese mainland to Hong KongChina (Hangzhou)China (Hong Kong)Cross-border
Sync between two overseas regionsSingaporeGermany (Frankfurt)Cross-region
Replicate within Hong KongChina (Hong Kong)China (Hong Kong)Same-region
Migrate from Hong Kong to SingaporeChina (Hong Kong)SingaporeCross-region

Prerequisites

Cross-border and cross-region data migration instances require public network connectivity between DTS and your databases. The specific requirement depends on how the source database is accessed:

  • If Access Method is set to Alibaba Cloud Instance for the source database, the source database must have a public endpoint.

  • If Access Method is not set to Alibaba Cloud Instance for the source database, the destination database must have a public endpoint.

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