diff --git a/hw/xfree86/common/xf86Config.h b/hw/xfree86/common/xf86Config.h
index aa0af4c22..a14913eb2 100644
--- a/hw/xfree86/common/xf86Config.h
+++ b/hw/xfree86/common/xf86Config.h
@@ -40,7 +40,8 @@
 /*
  * global structure that holds the result of parsing the config file
  */
-extern XF86ConfigPtr xf86configptr;
+/* only exported for funny Nvidia legacy - no driver should ever use it */
+extern _X_EXPORT XF86ConfigPtr xf86configptr;
 
 typedef enum _ConfigStatus {
     CONFIG_OK = 0,