diff --git a/maintenance/update.php b/maintenance/update.php
index 3afb562ed5e..c1849b1693b 100644
--- a/maintenance/update.php
+++ b/maintenance/update.php
@@ -88,6 +88,8 @@ class UpdateMediaWiki extends Maintenance {
 		$wgTitle = Title::newFromText( "MediaWiki database updater" );
 
 		$this->output( "MediaWiki {$wgVersion} Updater\n\n" );
+		
+		wfWaitForSlaves( 5 ); // let's not kill databases, shall we? ;) --tor
 
 		if ( !$this->hasOption( 'skip-compat-checks' ) ) {
 			$this->compatChecks();