diff --git a/integration-cli/docker_cli_run_test.go b/integration-cli/docker_cli_run_test.go
index 9e5a90bedf..a0c3903064 100644
--- a/integration-cli/docker_cli_run_test.go
+++ b/integration-cli/docker_cli_run_test.go
@@ -960,3 +960,14 @@ func TestRootWorkdir(t *testing.T) {
 
 	logDone("run - workdir /")
 }
+
+func TestAllowBindMountingRoot(t *testing.T) {
+	s, _, err := cmd(t, "run", "-v", "/:/host", "busybox", "ls", "/host")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(s, err)
+	}
+
+	deleteAllContainers()
+
+	logDone("run - bind mount / as volume")
+}
diff --git a/runconfig/parse.go b/runconfig/parse.go
index fd3e4a50a7..f057f311cc 100644
--- a/runconfig/parse.go
+++ b/runconfig/parse.go
@@ -132,8 +132,8 @@ func parseRun(cmd *flag.FlagSet, args []string, sysInfo *sysinfo.SysInfo) (*Conf
 	// add any bind targets to the list of container volumes
 	for bind := range flVolumes.GetMap() {
 		if arr := strings.Split(bind, ":"); len(arr) > 1 {
-			if arr[0] == "/" {
-				return nil, nil, cmd, fmt.Errorf("Invalid bind mount: source can't be '/'")
+			if arr[1] == "/" {
+				return nil, nil, cmd, fmt.Errorf("Invalid bind mount: desination can't be '/'")
 			}
 			// after creating the bind mount we want to delete it from the flVolumes values because
 			// we do not want bind mounts being committed to image configs
diff --git a/server/server.go b/server/server.go
index fa695adfe2..76b3a83971 100644
--- a/server/server.go
+++ b/server/server.go
@@ -2055,19 +2055,11 @@ func (srv *Server) ContainerStart(job *engine.Job) engine.Status {
 	if len(job.Environ()) > 0 {
 		hostConfig := runconfig.ContainerHostConfigFromJob(job)
 		// Validate the HostConfig binds. Make sure that:
-		// 1) the source of a bind mount isn't /
-		//         The bind mount "/:/foo" isn't allowed.
-		// 2) Check that the source exists
-		//        The source to be bind mounted must exist.
+		// the source exists
 		for _, bind := range hostConfig.Binds {
 			splitBind := strings.Split(bind, ":")
 			source := splitBind[0]
 
-			// refuse to bind mount "/" to the container
-			if source == "/" {
-				return job.Errorf("Invalid bind mount '%s' : source can't be '/'", bind)
-			}
-
 			// ensure the source exists on the host
 			_, err := os.Stat(source)
 			if err != nil && os.IsNotExist(err) {