diff --git a/meta/classes/systemd.bbclass b/meta/classes/systemd.bbclass
index cca2152927..42fa554c12 100644
--- a/meta/classes/systemd.bbclass
+++ b/meta/classes/systemd.bbclass
@@ -10,11 +10,14 @@ SYSTEMD_AUTO_ENABLE ??= "enable"
 # even if the systemd DISTRO_FEATURE isn't enabled.  As such don't make any
 # changes directly but check the DISTRO_FEATURES first.
 python __anonymous() {
-    if "systemd" in d.getVar("DISTRO_FEATURES", True).split():
+    features = d.getVar("DISTRO_FEATURES", True).split()
+    # If the distro features have systemd but not sysvinit, inhibit update-rcd
+    # from doing any work so that pure-systemd images don't have redundant init
+    # files.
+    if "systemd" in features:
         d.appendVar("DEPENDS", " systemd-systemctl-native")
-        # Set a variable so that update-rcd.bbclass knows we're active and can
-        # disable itself.
-        d.setVar("SYSTEMD_BBCLASS_ENABLED", "1")
+        if "sysvinit" not in features:
+            d.setVar("INHIBIT_UPDATERCD_BBCLASS", "1")
 }
 
 systemd_postinst() {
diff --git a/meta/classes/update-rc.d.bbclass b/meta/classes/update-rc.d.bbclass
index 0997702ee9..9f1e28a59d 100644
--- a/meta/classes/update-rc.d.bbclass
+++ b/meta/classes/update-rc.d.bbclass
@@ -80,12 +80,10 @@ python populate_packages_updatercd () {
         postrm += d.getVar('updatercd_postrm', True)
         d.setVar('pkg_postrm_%s' % pkg, postrm)
 
-    # Run if the sysvinit feature is present, or if the systemd feature is present
-    # but the systemd class hasn't been inherited.  We want to run in the latter case
-    # as systemd has sysvinit compatibility, but we don't want to always so that
-    # pure systemd images don't have redundent sysvinit files.
+    # Check that this class isn't being inhibited (generally, by
+    # systemd.bbclass) before doing any work.
     if "sysvinit" in d.getVar("DISTRO_FEATURES").split() or \
-       ("systemd" in d.getVar("DISTRO_FEATURES").split() and not d.getVar("SYSTEMD_BBCLASS_ENABLED", True)):
+       not d.getVar("INHIBIT_UPDATERCD_BBCLASS", True):
         pkgs = d.getVar('INITSCRIPT_PACKAGES', True)
         if pkgs == None:
             pkgs = d.getVar('UPDATERCPN', True)