diff --git a/osdep.c b/osdep.c
index 76bfa2663f0bd5019b26eddfaf9b9bdd9813f45e..087a5c2185a3dad5f255ec54d91fe762a8c825e8 100644
--- a/osdep.c
+++ b/osdep.c
@@ -143,6 +143,22 @@ void *shmat(int shmid, const void *shmaddr, int shmflg)
     return ptr;
 }
 
+/****************************************************************/
+/* sigaction bypassing the threads */
+
+static int kernel_sigaction(int signum, const struct qemu_sigaction *act, 
+                            struct qemu_sigaction *oldact, 
+                            int sigsetsize)
+{
+    QEMU_SYSCALL4(rt_sigaction, signum, act, oldact, sigsetsize);
+}
+
+int qemu_sigaction(int signum, const struct qemu_sigaction *act, 
+                   struct qemu_sigaction *oldact)
+{
+    return kernel_sigaction(signum, act, oldact, 8);
+}
+
 /****************************************************************/
 /* memory allocation */
 
diff --git a/osdep.h b/osdep.h
index dfe80bcf98e8d98d5d79f1ddf7e6f9f31c80ff21..f1d18202b07948d133c1f7658c869857250db9ce 100644
--- a/osdep.h
+++ b/osdep.h
@@ -22,6 +22,29 @@ void *get_mmap_addr(unsigned long size);
 extern void __longjmp(jmp_buf env, int val);
 #define longjmp __longjmp
 
+#include <signal.h>
+
+/* NOTE: it works only because the glibc sigset_t is >= kernel sigset_t */
+struct qemu_sigaction {
+    union {
+        void (*_sa_handler)(int);
+        void (*_sa_sigaction)(int, struct siginfo *, void *);
+    } _u;
+    unsigned long sa_flags;
+    void (*sa_restorer)(void);
+    sigset_t sa_mask;		/* mask last for extensibility */
+};
+
+int qemu_sigaction(int signum, const struct qemu_sigaction *act, 
+                   struct qemu_sigaction *oldact);
+
+#undef sigaction
+#undef sa_handler
+#undef sa_sigaction
+#define sigaction qemu_sigaction
+#define sa_handler	_u._sa_handler
+#define sa_sigaction	_u._sa_sigaction
+
 #endif
 
 #endif
diff --git a/vl.c b/vl.c
index 484d4becc58d77193c72e015456d8ca6dc6865a8..646d1ff94753aac251b25686f766028c2f251857 100644
--- a/vl.c
+++ b/vl.c
@@ -68,17 +68,6 @@
 #ifdef __APPLE__
 #include <SDL/SDL.h>
 #endif
-#if defined(__linux__)
-/* SDL use the pthreads and they modify sigaction. We don't
-   want that. */
-#if (__GLIBC__ > 2 || (__GLIBC__ == 2 && __GLIBC_MINOR__ >= 2))
-extern void __libc_sigaction();
-#define sigaction(sig, act, oact) __libc_sigaction(sig, act, oact)
-#else
-extern void __sigaction();
-#define sigaction(sig, act, oact) __sigaction(sig, act, oact)
-#endif
-#endif /* __linux__ */
 #endif /* CONFIG_SDL */
 
 #include "disas.h"