diff --git a/lib/nova_plugins/functions-libvirt b/lib/nova_plugins/functions-libvirt
index 4e5a748e45..cc013c3181 100644
--- a/lib/nova_plugins/functions-libvirt
+++ b/lib/nova_plugins/functions-libvirt
@@ -124,6 +124,12 @@ EOF
     # Service needs to be started on redhat/fedora -- do a restart for
     # sanity after fiddling the config.
     restart_service $LIBVIRT_DAEMON
+
+    # Restart virtlogd companion service to ensure it is running properly
+    #  https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/libvirt/+bug/1577455
+    #  https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1290357
+    # (not all platforms have it; libvirt 1.3+ only, thus the ignore)
+    restart_service virtlogd || true
 }