diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index d218f8f3c8..a92d7b8e14 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -26,12 +26,23 @@ ifeq (0,$(MAKELEVEL))
   )
 
 ifeq (1,$(git_module_status))
+ifeq (no,$(GIT_UPDATE))
+git-submodule-update:
+	$(call quiet-command, \
+            echo && \
+            echo "GIT submodule checkout is out of date. Please run" && \
+            echo "  scripts/git-submodule.sh update $(GIT_SUBMODULES)" && \
+            echo "from the source directory checkout $(SRC_PATH)" && \
+            echo && \
+            exit 1)
+else
 git-submodule-update:
 	$(call quiet-command, \
           (cd $(SRC_PATH) && GIT="$(GIT)" ./scripts/git-submodule.sh update $(GIT_SUBMODULES)), \
           "GIT","$(GIT_SUBMODULES)")
 endif
 endif
+endif
 
 .git-submodule-status: git-submodule-update config-host.mak
 
diff --git a/configure b/configure
index 5af463fed6..a6055c0710 100755
--- a/configure
+++ b/configure
@@ -267,8 +267,10 @@ stack_protector=""
 
 if test -e "$source_path/.git"
 then
+    git_update=yes
     git_submodules="ui/keycodemapdb"
 else
+    git_update=no
     git_submodules=""
 fi
 git="git"
@@ -1306,6 +1308,10 @@ for opt do
   ;;
   --with-git=*) git="$optarg"
   ;;
+  --enable-git-update) git_update=yes
+  ;;
+  --disable-git-update) git_update=no
+  ;;
   *)
       echo "ERROR: unknown option $opt"
       echo "Try '$0 --help' for more information"
@@ -5610,6 +5616,7 @@ echo "qemu_localedir=$qemu_localedir" >> $config_host_mak
 echo "libs_softmmu=$libs_softmmu" >> $config_host_mak
 echo "GIT=$git" >> $config_host_mak
 echo "GIT_SUBMODULES=$git_submodules" >> $config_host_mak
+echo "GIT_UPDATE=$git_update" >> $config_host_mak
 
 echo "ARCH=$ARCH" >> $config_host_mak
 
diff --git a/scripts/git-submodule.sh b/scripts/git-submodule.sh
index 21909ea413..63ace6fc55 100755
--- a/scripts/git-submodule.sh
+++ b/scripts/git-submodule.sh
@@ -21,6 +21,15 @@ error() {
     echo
     echo " $ ./configure --with-git='tsocks git'"
     echo
+    echo "Alternatively you may disable automatic GIT submodule checkout"
+    echo "with:"
+    echo
+    echo " $ ./configure --disable-git-update'"
+    echo
+    echo "and then manually update submodules prior to running make, with:"
+    echo
+    echo " $ scripts/git-sbumodule.sh update $modules"
+    echo
     exit 1
 }