When deploying services on US-based servers, garbled Chinese text is a common yet frequently underestimated issue. Whether it is question marks appearing on web pages, database exports filled with mojibake, Chinese filenames turning into gibberish in SSH terminals, or Chinese text pasted via Remote Desktop turning into blocks—these phenomena almost always point to the same root cause: inconsistent character encoding.
US servers default to an English environment; settings for locales, file systems, databases, and application character sets often fail to align with Chinese content. The key to fixing garbled text is ensuring that both the "writing end" and the "reading end" use the same encoding rules. Below, we outline the most common scenarios and solutions for both Linux and Windows environments.
First, identify where the encoding issue lies.
Before making changes, pinpoint the scope of the problem. If the SSH terminal displays garbled text but `cat` shows the file content correctly, the issue lies with the terminal's encoding rather than the server itself. If a web page displays garbled text but the Chinese stored in the database is correct, the problem lies in the web application's output encoding. If the content within the database is already garbled, you must troubleshoot both the data writing and reading processes.
After logging into the Linux server, run the `locale` command to check the current language environment. The `LANG` and `LC_ALL` variables in the output determine the system's default character set. US servers typically display `en_US.UTF-8`; while this setting supports Chinese display, garbled text can still occur if the application fails to inherit it correctly or uses a different encoding.
Linux Servers: From System Locale to the Application Layer
Configure the system locale. If `zh_CN.UTF-8` is missing from the `locale` output, you need to generate the Chinese language pack. On Ubuntu/Debian, run `sudo locale-gen zh_CN.UTF-8`, then edit `/etc/default/locale` to set `LANG=zh_CN.UTF-8` and `LC_ALL=zh_CN.UTF-8`. On CentOS/Rocky Linux, use `localectl set-locale LANG=zh_CN.UTF-8`. Changes take effect after logging back into the SSH session.
Check the SSH terminal encoding. For PuTTY users, set the character set to `UTF-8` under `Window` -> `Translation`. Xshell users should check the "Terminal" -> "Encoding" setting in the session properties and select Unicode (UTF-8). Windows Terminal and macOS Terminal default to UTF-8, so no adjustment is usually required.
Fixing garbled filenames. If filenames appear garbled after uploading files from Windows or extracting archives, use the `convmv` tool: `convmv -f GBK -t UTF-8 -r --notest /target_directory`. The `-r` flag enables recursive processing of subdirectories, and `--notest` ensures the conversion is actually performed rather than just previewed.
Fixing garbled file content. For plain text files, use `iconv`: `iconv -f GBK -t UTF-8 original_file.txt -o new_file.txt`. If there are many files, use `find` for batch processing. Note that `iconv` has poor tolerance for non-standard encoding and will throw an error when encountering characters it cannot convert; you can add the `-c` flag to ignore such characters.
Fixing garbled extraction. When extracting ZIP files on Linux, filenames may appear garbled if the archive was created on Windows using GBK encoding. Use `unzip -O CP936 filename.zip` to specify GBK encoding for extraction; newer versions of `unzip` use `-O GBK`. The tar format generally does not involve encoding conversion issues, so filenames usually display correctly.
Fixing garbled database text. MySQL is a common trouble spot. First, verify the server-side character set: `SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'character_set%';`. If `character_set_server` is not `utf8mb4`, add `character-set-server=utf8mb4` and `collation-server=utf8mb4_unicode_ci` to the `[mysqld]` section of `/etc/mysql/my.cnf`. Ensure consistency at the connection layer as well: use `mysqli_set_charset($conn, 'utf8mb4')` in PHP or specify `charset=utf8mb4` in the PDO connection string. Explicitly specify the encoding during import and export: `mysqldump --default-character-set=utf8mb4 -u root -p database_name > backup.sql`.
Garbled output in web applications. For Nginx, add `charset utf-8;` to the `http` or `server` block. For PHP, set `default_charset="UTF-8"` in `php.ini`. Declare `<meta charset="UTF-8">` in the HTML page header. If using WordPress, also check that `DB_CHARSET` in `wp-config.php` is set to `utf8mb4`.
Windows Server: Regional Settings and Remote Desktop
Garbled Chinese characters on Windows Server are usually related to system regional settings.
Change the system locale. Go to "Control Panel → Region → Administrative → Change system locale," select "Chinese (Simplified, China)," and uncheck "Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support." While this option benefits modern applications, it causes garbled text in older programs that rely on the system ANSI code page. A server restart is required for changes to take effect.
Garbled text in Remote Desktop clipboard. Garbled characters when copying Chinese text via RDP are usually caused by an issue with the `rdpclip.exe` process. Open Task Manager on the server, end the `rdpclip.exe` process, and then restart it via "File → Run new task." If the problem persists, check the Remote Desktop client settings under "Local Resources → Clipboard" to ensure the clipboard option is enabled.
Garbled text in web applications. In IIS, set the response header to `Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8`. For ASP.NET applications, configure `<globalization requestEncoding="utf-8" responseEncoding="utf-8"/>` in `web.config`.
Minimizing garbled text at the source: Standardizing encoding
Fixing issues is a reactive measure; a better strategy is to standardize encoding from the very beginning of deployment. Ensure all HTML, CSS, and JS files are saved using UTF-8 encoding; configure the database, data tables, and connection character sets to `utf8mb4`; set the server locale to `zh_CN.UTF-8` (or at least `en_US.UTF-8`); and use UTF-8 encoding for file transfers and compressed archives whenever possible.
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Garbled Chinese text on US servers is essentially an encoding mismatch between the "English environment" and the "Chinese content." By standardizing every layer—from the locale, terminal, and files to the database and web applications—on UTF-8, the garbled text issue is naturally resolved. Visit the Jtti official website to view the full specifications and current promotions for US CN2 cloud servers, and choose a stable foundation for your Chinese-language business.
