diff --git a/src/util/virstoragefile.c b/src/util/virstoragefile.c
index 78a7a9f8b9..96be02e66e 100644
--- a/src/util/virstoragefile.c
+++ b/src/util/virstoragefile.c
@@ -1989,6 +1989,10 @@ virStorageSourceIsEmpty(virStorageSourcePtr src)
     if (src->type == VIR_STORAGE_TYPE_NONE)
         return true;
 
+    if (src->type == VIR_STORAGE_TYPE_NETWORK &&
+        src->protocol == VIR_STORAGE_NET_PROTOCOL_NONE)
+        return true;
+
     return false;
 }