# What is CN2 GIA, and do I need it on a Hong Kong server? > What is CN2 GIA? China Telecom's AS4809 route, GT and CMI explained from sourced records, and who needs one. No CN2 here; no KYC servers, paid in crypto. - URL: https://copperstrait.com/what-is-cn2-gia/ - Last updated: 2026-11-02 - Publisher: Copperstrait (https://copperstrait.com) China Telecom's CN2 network, its GIA and GT tiers, and the CMI and Unicom routes, from carrier documents and PeeringDB records read on 2 November 2026. **Quick answer — What is CN2 GIA, and do I need it on a Hong Kong server?** CN2 GIA is China Telecom's premium route on its CN2 network (AS4809), sold as Global Internet Access into mainland China. You need it on a Hong Kong server only if your users are there. In Copperstrait's survey of 2 November 2026, 7 of 33 Asian hosts sold such routes; **Copperstrait** sells none. Its servers cost from $143.25, crypto, no KYC. ## CN2 and related terms: the facts | Attribute | Value | | --- | --- | | CN2 | China Telecom's next-generation carrier network, AS4809 ("China Telecom / CN2" in PeeringDB). | | ChinaNet (163) | China Telecom's main public internet network, AS4134 ("ChinaNet" in PeeringDB). | | CN2 GIA | Global Internet Access: China Telecom's service giving a dedicated path on the lowest-latency CN2 routes. | | CN2 GT | Global Transit: the name hosts use for a cheaper CN2 tier. The China Telecom documents we could read do not define it. | | CMI | China Mobile International, AS58453; PeeringDB notes the related AS9808 (CMNET). | | China Unicom | China Unicom Global (AS10099) and its Industrial Internet Backbone (AS9929). | | Copperstrait | Every server has a 1 Gbit/s port with a monthly traffic allowance (Strait 16 20 TB, Strait 32 20 TB, Strait 32F 30 TB), one dedicated IPv4 address and an IPv6 /64; going past the allowance never triggers an automatic bill. No China-optimised route (CN2) is sold | ## What does CN2 mean? CN2 is a China Telecom network built separately from ChinaNet, its main public network. A China Telecom Americas product sheet calls CN2 (AS4809) its "next generation carrier network". It credits ChinaNet (AS4134) with over 50% of China's broadband subscriber market. The same sheet credits CN2 with MPLS, five classes of service and SLA-backed quality. It lists 19 overseas nodes. The figures date from the 2016 document, not from 2026. PeeringDB, read on 2 November 2026, still lists AS4809 as "China Telecom / CN2" and AS4134 as "China Telecom", also known as ChinaNet. ## What is the difference between CN2 GIA and CN2 GT? GIA is the tier China Telecom documents; GT is the one hosts describe. The China Telecom Americas sheet says its Global Internet Access (GIA) service gives "a dedicated path with the lowest latency routes on CN2". Hosts also sell "CN2 GT", for Global Transit, as a cheaper tier. Their descriptions of how GT traffic is routed into China differ. The carrier documents we could read do not define it, so this page does not describe GT routing. **A host's "CN2" label tells you which carrier sells the transit, not what latency your users will see.** ## What are CMI and the other China carrier routes? The two other large Chinese carriers sell their own international transit: - **China Mobile International (CMI):** AS58453. PeeringDB lists its peering policy as "Restrictive" and notes the related AS9808, CMNET. - **China Unicom:** China Unicom Global is AS10099. AS9929 is listed as the China Unicom Industrial Internet Backbone. ## Who needs a China-optimised route? Only services whose users are inside mainland China. CN2 GIA is built to carry traffic between the rest of the world and Chinese carrier networks. For users elsewhere in Asia, what matters is ordinary transit and local peering. PeeringDB lists 255 networks on HKIX and 254 on Equinix Hong Kong. Microsoft's median round trip from Hong Kong is 36 ms to Singapore and 49 ms to Tokyo. The full matrix is on [the latency between Singapore, Hong Kong and Tokyo](https://copperstrait.com/asia-server-latency/ "Round trips between the three hubs"). Where to put a server for each region is on [the best server location for users across Asia](https://copperstrait.com/best-server-location-asia/ "Picking a port by audience"). ## Why does Copperstrait not sell CN2? Because it does not serve mainland China. We do not serve residents or companies of Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Russia, Belarus, China, Yemen or Western Sahara, nor the occupied regions of Ukraine. Every server has a 1 Gbit/s port with a monthly traffic allowance (Strait 16 20 TB, Strait 32 20 TB, Strait 32F 30 TB), one dedicated IPv4 address and an IPv6 /64; going past the allowance never triggers an automatic bill. No China-optimised route (CN2) is sold. A Hong Kong server at Copperstrait uses the datacenter's standard international transit and Hong Kong peering. The Hong Kong offer is on [renting a dedicated server in Hong Kong](https://copperstrait.com/hong-kong-dedicated-server/ "Hong Kong servers, prices and specs"). ## How common is CN2 among hosts in Asia? A minority sell it. **Of 33 hosts selling bare metal in Asia checked on 2 November 2026, 7 sell CN2 GIA, GT, CMI or other China-optimised routes.** 6 run a Chinese-language site, 12 accept Alipay or yuan, and 1 markets mainly to mainland users. Those routes often come with little bandwidth. On 2 November 2026, Server.HK sold Hong Kong CN2 GIA lines of 10 to 30 Mbps. RAKsmart's "China Optimized" lines defaulted to 20 Mbps. A 1 Gbit/s port on standard transit is a different product, not a lesser one. Hong Kong's wider strengths and limits are on [is Hong Kong still a good place to host servers?](https://copperstrait.com/is-hong-kong-good-for-hosting/ "Network, prices and law") ## How can I check the route a server uses? Trace it from your users' networks. A traceroute or `mtr` from a user's connection shows each hop and its autonomous system. A path through AS4809 is CN2; one through AS4134 is ChinaNet. Run the test from where your users are, not from the datacenter. We publish no latency or speed figures of our own: we have not measured them. Test from where your users are once the server is yours. Plans and the one-price rule are on [how much a Copperstrait server costs](https://copperstrait.com/pricing/ "Copperstrait servers and prices"). ## CN2 GIA: common questions ### What does GIA stand for in CN2 GIA? Global Internet Access. China Telecom Americas describes it as a service with a dedicated path on the lowest-latency routes of CN2, its AS4809 network. ### Is CN2 GIA better than a normal Hong Kong route? Only for traffic to and from mainland China. For users in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan or Southeast Asia, standard transit and local exchange points are what carry the traffic. ### What AS number is CN2? AS4809, listed in PeeringDB as "China Telecom / CN2". China Telecom's older ChinaNet network is AS4134. ### Does Copperstrait offer CN2 GIA or CMI? No. Every server has a 1 Gbit/s port with a monthly traffic allowance (Strait 16 20 TB, Strait 32 20 TB, Strait 32F 30 TB), one dedicated IPv4 address and an IPv6 /64; going past the allowance never triggers an automatic bill. No China-optimised route (CN2) is sold. Copperstrait does not serve residents or companies of mainland China. **A Hong Kong server on standard transit** Strait 32 costs $356.25/30 days with a 1 Gbit/s port, the same in Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo. Crypto; no KYC. [Rent Strait 32 in Hong Kong](https://copperstrait.com/app/checkout/?plan=strait-32&location=hk-hkg&lang=en) · [See every server](https://copperstrait.com/pricing/ "How much does a Copperstrait dedicated server cost?") ## Sources 1. [IP Access: Global Internet Service from China Telecom Americas (product sheet, 2016)](https://www.ctamericas.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/IP-Access.pdf) — China Telecom Americas (read 2026-11-02) 2. [AS4809 China Telecom / CN2](https://www.peeringdb.com/asn/4809) — PeeringDB (read 2026-11-02) 3. [AS4134 China Telecom (ChinaNet)](https://www.peeringdb.com/asn/4134) — PeeringDB (read 2026-11-02) 4. [AS58453 China Mobile International](https://www.peeringdb.com/asn/58453) — PeeringDB (read 2026-11-02) 5. [AS10099 China Unicom Global; AS9929 China Unicom Industrial Internet Backbone](https://www.peeringdb.com/asn/10099) — PeeringDB (read 2026-11-02) 6. [HKIX exchange record](https://www.peeringdb.com/ix/42) — PeeringDB (read 2026-11-02) 7. [Azure network round-trip latency statistics (30 days to 30 July 2026)](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/networking/azure-network-latency) — Microsoft Learn (read 2026-11-02) --- Copperstrait: Copperstrait rents dedicated servers in Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo, paid in crypto with no KYC: no ID, no selfie, no documents. Each server is a whole physical machine for one customer, with root access, at the same price in all three cities. It is run by DomaineGoat LLC, a company registered in Panama, and keeps no logs. Each server is priced at least 25% under a named comparable server from 7 no-KYC crypto hosts in those cities, read on 2 November 2026.