diff --git a/vl.c b/vl.c
index 50f133d496..57f0ba53df 100644
--- a/vl.c
+++ b/vl.c
@@ -3282,6 +3282,8 @@ static int cpu_can_run(CPUState *env)
         return 0;
     if (env->stopped)
         return 0;
+    if (!vm_running)
+        return 0;
     return 1;
 }