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I don't know if my app will work in China and I don't know how to test it. I had read somewhere that there's a firebase Chinese domain .cn in operation. Is there a possibility to transfer the current project to the Chinese domain and make it work, if it doesn't already?

If I create a new project and select the Chinese servers for my firebase services then will it have any other adverse consequences for the rest of the world? This solution would literally force all the developers to have the firebase servers located in China, just so they don't miss out out on their Chinese user base, which I assume could be an issue to some.

I might not have the best ideas but any suggestion and a workaround would be appreciated.

Sabito stands with Ukraine
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AshishB
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  • Also, is VPN usage popular in China? If so then it would mean that there shouldn't be much to worry about. – AshishB Jun 11 '20 at 05:07

2 Answers2

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There isn't a simple way to do that. Indeed, trying to set the servers there might a be way, but it's not a guarantee, since China Firewalls are constantly changing. You can try some onlines tools as this one here to verify if your domain is blocked, by adding the URL of your application.

Besides that, the best option is the one clarified in this other post here. You would create an API in Heroku and make the data and calls from Firebase go over this API, so it would make the connection. Another option you may try is using a proxy server - as very well explained in the article Firebase: Accessing Firestore and Firebase through a proxy server - so it gets complied and it's possible to be used in China.

The usage of VPN is not a very good option, as not of them work in China and the ones that work can easily vary, also, this could impact the usability, since it might affect performance and usage for the users there.

To summarize, there isn't a specific and fully correct answer to using Firestore in China, due to the fact that updates and changes on their rules are regular, but these are some alternatives that you can give it a try. It's more about trying the one that would be less damaging for your use case.

Let me know if the information helped you!

gso_gabriel
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Might be helpful for someone...

There is a Firebase alternative for China - Huawei Mobile Services. It contains services like Auth Service, Cloud Functions, Cloud DB, Crash, Push Kit, Ad Kit, and many more...

K.Amanov
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