diff --git a/block.c b/block.c
index 9b444b3443..3366017aea 100644
--- a/block.c
+++ b/block.c
@@ -3169,7 +3169,7 @@ static int64_t coroutine_fn bdrv_co_get_block_status(BlockDriverState *bs,
     if (!(ret & BDRV_BLOCK_DATA)) {
         if (bdrv_has_zero_init(bs)) {
             ret |= BDRV_BLOCK_ZERO;
-        } else {
+        } else if (bs->backing_hd) {
             BlockDriverState *bs2 = bs->backing_hd;
             int64_t length2 = bdrv_getlength(bs2);
             if (length2 >= 0 && sector_num >= (length2 >> BDRV_SECTOR_BITS)) {