diff --git a/cluster.yml b/cluster.yml
index 18e458652..9bb149fd2 100644
--- a/cluster.yml
+++ b/cluster.yml
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@
   any_errors_fatal: true
   roles:
     - { role: kubernetes/preinstall, tags: preinstall }
+    - { role: docker, tags: docker }
 
 - hosts: etcd:!k8s-cluster
   any_errors_fatal: true
@@ -40,6 +41,7 @@
   any_errors_fatal: true
   roles:
     - { role: dnsmasq, tags: dnsmasq }
+    - { role: kubernetes/preinstall, tags: resolvconf }
 
 - hosts: kube-master[0]
   any_errors_fatal: true
diff --git a/docs/ansible.md b/docs/ansible.md
index 513ed0dce..d3ecde468 100644
--- a/docs/ansible.md
+++ b/docs/ansible.md
@@ -63,6 +63,7 @@ The following tags are defined in playbooks:
 |                    canal | Network plugin Canal
 |           cloud-provider | Cloud-provider related tasks
 |                  dnsmasq | Configuring DNS stack for hosts and K8s apps
+|                   docker | Configuring docker for hosts
 |                 download | Fetching container images
 |                     etcd | Configuring etcd cluster
 |         etcd-pre-upgrade | Upgrading etcd cluster
diff --git a/docs/dns-stack.md b/docs/dns-stack.md
index e6df11b73..9905eb496 100644
--- a/docs/dns-stack.md
+++ b/docs/dns-stack.md
@@ -1,15 +1,24 @@
 K8s DNS stack by Kargo
 ======================
 
-Kargo configures a [Kubernetes DNS](http://kubernetes.io/docs/admin/dns/)
+For K8s cluster nodes, kargo configures a [Kubernetes DNS](http://kubernetes.io/docs/admin/dns/)
 [cluster add-on](http://releases.k8s.io/master/cluster/addons/README.md)
 to serve as an authoritative DNS server for a given ``dns_domain`` and its
 ``svc, default.svc`` default subdomains (a total of ``ndots: 5`` max levels).
 
-Note, additional search (sub)domains may be defined in the ``searchdomains``
+Other nodes in the inventory, like external storage nodes or a separate etcd cluster
+node group, considered non-cluster and left up to the user to configure DNS resolve.
+
+Note, custom ``ndots`` values affect only the dnsmasq daemon set (explained below).
+While the kubedns has the ``ndots=5`` hardcoded, which is not recommended due to
+[DNS performance reasons](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/14051).
+You can use config maps for the kubedns app to workaround the issue, which is
+yet in the Kargo scope.
+
+Additional search (sub)domains may be defined in the ``searchdomains``
 and ``ndots`` vars. And additional recursive DNS resolvers in the `` upstream_dns_servers``,
-``nameservers`` vars. Intranet DNS resolvers should be specified in the first
-place, followed by external resolvers, for example:
+``nameservers`` vars. Intranet/cloud provider DNS resolvers should be specified
+in the first place, followed by external resolvers, for example:
 
 ```
 skip_dnsmasq: true
@@ -21,7 +30,13 @@ or
 skip_dnsmasq: false
 upstream_dns_servers: [172.18.32.6, 172.18.32.7, 8.8.8.8, 8.8.8.4]
 ```
-The vars are explained below as well.
+The vars are explained below. For the early cluster deployment stage, when there
+is yet K8s cluster and apps exist, a user may expect local repos to be
+accessible via authoritative intranet resolvers. For that case, if none custom vars
+was specified, the default resolver is set to either the cloud provider default
+or `8.8.8.8`. And domain is set to the default ``dns_domain`` value as well.
+Later, the nameservers will be reconfigured to the DNS service IP that Kargo
+configures for K8s cluster.
 
 DNS configuration details
 -------------------------
diff --git a/inventory/group_vars/all.yml b/inventory/group_vars/all.yml
index f64cab5aa..0d985d23c 100644
--- a/inventory/group_vars/all.yml
+++ b/inventory/group_vars/all.yml
@@ -33,8 +33,8 @@ kube_users:
 
 # Kubernetes cluster name, also will be used as DNS domain
 cluster_name: cluster.local
-# Subdomains of DNS domain to be resolved via /etc/resolv.conf
-ndots: 5
+# Subdomains of DNS domain to be resolved via /etc/resolv.conf for hostnet pods
+ndots: 2
 # Deploy netchecker app to verify DNS resolve as an HTTP service
 deploy_netchecker: false
 
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/defaults/main.yml b/roles/dnsmasq/defaults/main.yml
index 0d3d30200..b867820bf 100644
--- a/roles/dnsmasq/defaults/main.yml
+++ b/roles/dnsmasq/defaults/main.yml
@@ -11,10 +11,6 @@
 #nameservers:
 #  - 127.0.0.1
 
-# CoreOS cloud init config file to define /etc/resolv.conf content
-# for hostnet pods and infra needs
-resolveconf_cloud_init_conf: /etc/resolveconf_cloud_init.conf
-
 # Versions
 dnsmasq_version: 2.72
 
@@ -25,9 +21,6 @@ dnsmasq_image_tag: "{{ dnsmasq_version }}"
 # Skip dnsmasq setup
 skip_dnsmasq: false
 
-# Skip setting up dnsmasq daemonset
-skip_dnsmasq_k8s: "{{ skip_dnsmasq }}"
-
 # Limits for dnsmasq/kubedns apps
 dns_cpu_limit: 100m
 dns_memory_limit: 170Mi
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/dnsmasq.yml b/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/dnsmasq.yml
deleted file mode 100644
index bc37580de..000000000
--- a/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/dnsmasq.yml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,58 +0,0 @@
----
-- name: ensure dnsmasq.d directory exists
-  file:
-    path: /etc/dnsmasq.d
-    state: directory
-
-- name: ensure dnsmasq.d-available directory exists
-  file:
-    path: /etc/dnsmasq.d-available
-    state: directory
-
-- name: Write dnsmasq configuration
-  template:
-    src: 01-kube-dns.conf.j2
-    dest: /etc/dnsmasq.d-available/01-kube-dns.conf
-    mode: 0755
-    backup: yes
-
-- name: Stat dnsmasq configuration
-  stat: path=/etc/dnsmasq.d/01-kube-dns.conf
-  register: sym
-
-- name: Move previous configuration
-  command: mv /etc/dnsmasq.d/01-kube-dns.conf /etc/dnsmasq.d-available/01-kube-dns.conf.bak
-  changed_when: False
-  when: sym.stat.islnk is defined and sym.stat.islnk == False
-
-- name: Enable dnsmasq configuration
-  file:
-    src: /etc/dnsmasq.d-available/01-kube-dns.conf
-    dest: /etc/dnsmasq.d/01-kube-dns.conf
-    state: link
-
-- name: Create dnsmasq manifests
-  template: src={{item.file}} dest=/etc/kubernetes/{{item.file}}
-  with_items:
-    - {file: dnsmasq-ds.yml, type: ds}
-    - {file: dnsmasq-svc.yml, type: svc}
-  register: manifests
-  when: inventory_hostname == groups['kube-master'][0]
-
-- name: Start Resources
-  kube:
-    name: dnsmasq
-    namespace: kube-system
-    kubectl: "{{bin_dir}}/kubectl"
-    resource: "{{item.item.type}}"
-    filename: /etc/kubernetes/{{item.item.file}}
-    state: "{{item.changed | ternary('latest','present') }}"
-  with_items: "{{ manifests.results }}"
-  when: inventory_hostname == groups['kube-master'][0]
-
-- name: Check for dnsmasq port (pulling image and running container)
-  wait_for:
-    host: "{{dns_server}}"
-    port: 53
-    delay: 5
-  when: inventory_hostname == groups['kube-node'][0]
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/main.yml b/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/main.yml
index c82e83218..fa89d6c6a 100644
--- a/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/main.yml
+++ b/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/main.yml
@@ -1,7 +1,61 @@
 ---
-- include: dnsmasq.yml
-  when: "{{ not skip_dnsmasq_k8s|bool }}"
-  tags: dnsmasq
+- name: ensure dnsmasq.d directory exists
+  file:
+    path: /etc/dnsmasq.d
+    state: directory
+  tags: bootstrap-os
 
-- include: resolvconf.yml
-  tags: resolvconf
+- name: ensure dnsmasq.d-available directory exists
+  file:
+    path: /etc/dnsmasq.d-available
+    state: directory
+  tags: bootstrap-os
+
+- name: Write dnsmasq configuration
+  template:
+    src: 01-kube-dns.conf.j2
+    dest: /etc/dnsmasq.d-available/01-kube-dns.conf
+    mode: 0755
+    backup: yes
+
+- name: Stat dnsmasq configuration
+  stat: path=/etc/dnsmasq.d/01-kube-dns.conf
+  register: sym
+
+- name: Move previous configuration
+  command: mv /etc/dnsmasq.d/01-kube-dns.conf /etc/dnsmasq.d-available/01-kube-dns.conf.bak
+  changed_when: False
+  when: sym.stat.islnk is defined and sym.stat.islnk == False
+
+- name: Enable dnsmasq configuration
+  file:
+    src: /etc/dnsmasq.d-available/01-kube-dns.conf
+    dest: /etc/dnsmasq.d/01-kube-dns.conf
+    state: link
+
+- name: Create dnsmasq manifests
+  template: src={{item.file}} dest=/etc/kubernetes/{{item.file}}
+  with_items:
+    - {file: dnsmasq-ds.yml, type: ds}
+    - {file: dnsmasq-svc.yml, type: svc}
+  register: manifests
+  when: inventory_hostname == groups['kube-master'][0]
+
+- name: Start Resources
+  kube:
+    name: dnsmasq
+    namespace: kube-system
+    kubectl: "{{bin_dir}}/kubectl"
+    resource: "{{item.item.type}}"
+    filename: /etc/kubernetes/{{item.item.file}}
+    state: "{{item.changed | ternary('latest','present') }}"
+  with_items: "{{ manifests.results }}"
+  when: inventory_hostname == groups['kube-master'][0]
+
+- name: Check for dnsmasq port (pulling image and running container)
+  wait_for:
+    host: "{{dns_server}}"
+    port: 53
+    delay: 5
+  when: inventory_hostname == groups['kube-node'][0]
+  tags: facts
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/templates/01-kube-dns.conf.j2 b/roles/dnsmasq/templates/01-kube-dns.conf.j2
index 0aa2a6bcf..562b4bbcc 100644
--- a/roles/dnsmasq/templates/01-kube-dns.conf.j2
+++ b/roles/dnsmasq/templates/01-kube-dns.conf.j2
@@ -13,11 +13,8 @@ server=/{{ dns_domain }}/{{ skydns_server }}
 {% for srv in upstream_dns_servers %}
 server={{ srv }}
 {% endfor %}
-{% elif cloud_provider is defined and cloud_provider == "gce" %}
-server=169.254.169.254
 {% else %}
- server=8.8.8.8
- server=8.8.4.4
+server={{ default_resolver }}
 {% endif %}
 
 {% if kube_log_level == 4 %}
diff --git a/roles/docker/handlers/main.yml b/roles/docker/handlers/main.yml
index 04d761796..fd866a109 100644
--- a/roles/docker/handlers/main.yml
+++ b/roles/docker/handlers/main.yml
@@ -12,17 +12,17 @@
   shell: systemctl daemon-reload
   when: ansible_service_mgr == "systemd"
 
-- name: Docker | reload docker
-  service:
-    name: docker
-    state: restarted
-
 - name: Docker | reload docker.socket
   service:
     name: docker.socket
     state: restarted
   when: ansible_os_family == 'CoreOS'
 
+- name: Docker | reload docker
+  service:
+    name: docker
+    state: restarted
+
 - name: Docker | pause while Docker restarts
   pause: seconds=10 prompt="Waiting for docker restart"
 
diff --git a/roles/etcd/meta/main.yml b/roles/etcd/meta/main.yml
index c8a1c8c34..744eb9fe2 100644
--- a/roles/etcd/meta/main.yml
+++ b/roles/etcd/meta/main.yml
@@ -3,8 +3,6 @@ dependencies:
   - role: adduser
     user: "{{ addusers.etcd }}"
     when: ansible_os_family != 'CoreOS'
-  - role: docker
-    when: (ansible_os_family != "CoreOS" and etcd_deployment_type == "docker" or inventory_hostname in groups['k8s-cluster'])
   - role: download
     file: "{{ downloads.etcd }}"
     tags: download
diff --git a/roles/kubernetes/node/meta/main.yml b/roles/kubernetes/node/meta/main.yml
index 8959ebe20..62720257d 100644
--- a/roles/kubernetes/node/meta/main.yml
+++ b/roles/kubernetes/node/meta/main.yml
@@ -28,13 +28,10 @@ dependencies:
     tags: [download, netchecker]
   - role: download
     file: "{{ downloads.kubednsmasq }}"
-    when: not skip_dnsmasq_k8s|default(false)
     tags: [download, dnsmasq]
   - role: download
     file: "{{ downloads.kubedns }}"
-    when: not skip_dnsmasq_k8s|default(false)
     tags: [download, dnsmasq]
   - role: download
     file: "{{ downloads.exechealthz }}"
-    when: not skip_dnsmasq_k8s|default(false)
     tags: [download, dnsmasq]
diff --git a/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/defaults/main.yml b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/defaults/main.yml
index c02a32e29..64f0ff24b 100644
--- a/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/defaults/main.yml
+++ b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/defaults/main.yml
@@ -48,3 +48,7 @@ openstack_tenant_id: "{{ lookup('env','OS_TENANT_ID')  }}"
 
 # All clients access each node individually, instead of using a load balancer.
 etcd_multiaccess: true
+
+# CoreOS cloud init config file to define /etc/resolv.conf content
+# for hostnet pods and infra needs
+resolveconf_cloud_init_conf: /etc/resolveconf_cloud_init.conf
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/files/dhclient_nodnsupdate b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/files/dhclient_nodnsupdate
similarity index 100%
rename from roles/dnsmasq/files/dhclient_nodnsupdate
rename to roles/kubernetes/preinstall/files/dhclient_nodnsupdate
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/handlers/main.yml b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/handlers/main.yml
similarity index 54%
rename from roles/dnsmasq/handlers/main.yml
rename to roles/kubernetes/preinstall/handlers/main.yml
index b939189d7..e760a8d8b 100644
--- a/roles/dnsmasq/handlers/main.yml
+++ b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/handlers/main.yml
@@ -1,11 +1,11 @@
-- name: Dnsmasq | restart network
+- name: Preinstall | restart network
   command: /bin/true
   notify:
-    - Dnsmasq | reload network
-    - Dnsmasq | update resolvconf
+    - Preinstall | reload network
+    - Preinstall | update resolvconf
   when: ansible_os_family != "CoreOS"
 
-- name: Dnsmasq | reload network
+- name: Preinstall | reload network
   service:
     name: >-
       {% if ansible_os_family == "RedHat" -%}
@@ -16,31 +16,30 @@
     state: restarted
   when: ansible_os_family != "RedHat" and ansible_os_family != "CoreOS"
 
-- name: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf
+- name: Preinstall | update resolvconf
   command: /bin/true
   notify:
-    - Dnsmasq | reload resolvconf
-    - Dnsmasq | reload kubelet
+    - Preinstall | reload resolvconf
+    - Preinstall | reload kubelet
   when: ansible_os_family != "CoreOS"
 
-- name: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf for CoreOS
+- name: Preinstall | update resolvconf for CoreOS
   command: /bin/true
   notify:
-    - Dnsmasq | apply resolvconf cloud-init
-    - Dnsmasq | reload kubelet
+    - Preinstall | apply resolvconf cloud-init
+    - Preinstall | reload kubelet
   when: ansible_os_family == "CoreOS"
 
-- name: Dnsmasq | reload resolvconf
+- name: Preinstall | reload resolvconf
   command: /sbin/resolvconf -u
   ignore_errors: true
 
-- name: Dnsmasq | apply resolvconf cloud-init
+- name: Preinstall | apply resolvconf cloud-init
   command: /usr/bin/coreos-cloudinit --from-file {{ resolveconf_cloud_init_conf }}
   when: ansible_os_family == "CoreOS"
 
-- name: Dnsmasq | reload kubelet
+- name: Preinstall | reload kubelet
   service:
     name: kubelet
     state: restarted
-  when: "{{ inventory_hostname in groups['kube-master'] }}"
-  ignore_errors: true
+  when: "{{ inventory_hostname in groups['kube-master'] and not dns_early|bool }}"
diff --git a/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/main.yml b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/main.yml
index 07dc53fec..fd8a808a3 100644
--- a/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/main.yml
+++ b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/main.yml
@@ -177,3 +177,6 @@
 
 - include: etchosts.yml
   tags: [bootstrap-os, etchosts]
+
+- include: resolvconf.yml
+  tags: [bootstrap-os, resolvconf]
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/resolvconf.yml b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/resolvconf.yml
similarity index 72%
rename from roles/dnsmasq/tasks/resolvconf.yml
rename to roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/resolvconf.yml
index ba367ac48..f82e9ddfb 100644
--- a/roles/dnsmasq/tasks/resolvconf.yml
+++ b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/resolvconf.yml
@@ -4,17 +4,33 @@
   register: resolvconf
   ignore_errors: yes
   changed_when: false
+  tags: facts
+
+- name: check kubelet
+  stat:
+    path: "{{ bin_dir }}/kubelet"
+  register: kubelet
+  changed_when: false
+  tags: facts
+
+- name: check if early DNS configuration stage
+  set_fact:
+    dns_early: >-
+      {%- if kubelet.stat.exists -%}false{%- else -%}true{%- endif -%}
+  tags: facts
 
 - name: target resolv.conf file
   set_fact:
     resolvconffile: >-
       {%- if resolvconf.rc == 0 -%}/etc/resolvconf/resolv.conf.d/head{%- else -%}/etc/resolv.conf{%- endif -%}
   when: ansible_os_family != "CoreOS"
+  tags: facts
 
 - name: target temporary resolvconf cloud init file
   set_fact:
     resolvconffile: /tmp/resolveconf_cloud_init_conf
   when: ansible_os_family == "CoreOS"
+  tags: facts
 
 - name: create temporary resolveconf cloud init file
   command: cp -f /etc/resolv.conf "{{ resolvconffile }}"
@@ -24,16 +40,30 @@
   set_fact:
     searchentries:
       "{{ ([ 'default.svc.' + dns_domain, 'svc.' + dns_domain ] + searchdomains|default([])) | join(' ') }}"
+  tags: facts
 
-- name: pick dnsmasq cluster IP
+- name: decide on dns server IP
   set_fact:
-    dnsmasq_server: >-
-      {%- if skip_dnsmasq|bool -%}{{ [ skydns_server ] + upstream_dns_servers|default([]) }}{%- else -%}{{ [ dns_server ] }}{%- endif -%}
+    dns_server_real: >-
+      {%- if dns_early|bool -%}{{default_resolver}}{%- else -%}{{dns_server}}{%- endif -%}
+
+- name: pick dnsmasq cluster IP or default resolver
+  set_fact:
+    dnsmasq_server: |-
+      {%- if skip_dnsmasq|bool and not dns_early|bool -%}
+        {{ [ skydns_server ] + upstream_dns_servers|default([]) }}
+      {%- elif dns_early|bool -%}
+        {{ [ dns_server_real ] + upstream_dns_servers|default([]) }}
+      {%- else -%}
+        {{ [ dns_server ] }}
+      {%- endif -%}
+  tags: facts
 
 - name: generate nameservers to resolvconf
   set_fact:
     nameserverentries:
       "{{ dnsmasq_server|default([]) + nameservers|default([]) }}"
+  tags: facts
 
 - name: Remove search and nameserver options from resolvconf head
   lineinfile:
@@ -46,7 +76,7 @@
     - search
     - nameserver
   when: resolvconf.rc == 0
-  notify: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf
+  notify: Preinstall | update resolvconf
 
 - name: Remove search and nameserver options from resolvconf cloud init temporary file
   lineinfile:
@@ -59,7 +89,7 @@
     - search
     - nameserver
   when: ansible_os_family == "CoreOS"
-  notify: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf for CoreOS
+  notify: Preinstall | update resolvconf for CoreOS
 
 - name: Add search domains to resolvconf file
   lineinfile:
@@ -69,7 +99,7 @@
     insertbefore: BOF
     backup: yes
     follow: yes
-  notify: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf
+  notify: Preinstall | update resolvconf
 
 - name: Add nameservers to resolv.conf
   blockinfile:
@@ -84,7 +114,7 @@
     backup: yes
     follow: yes
     marker: "# Ansible nameservers {mark}"
-  notify: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf
+  notify: Preinstall | update resolvconf
 
 - name: Add options to resolv.conf
   lineinfile:
@@ -99,7 +129,7 @@
     - ndots:{{ ndots }}
     - timeout:2
     - attempts:2
-  notify: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf
+  notify: Preinstall | update resolvconf
 
 - name: Remove search and nameserver options from resolvconf base
   lineinfile:
@@ -112,16 +142,16 @@
     - search
     - nameserver
   when: resolvconf.rc == 0
-  notify: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf
+  notify: Preinstall | update resolvconf
 
 - name: disable resolv.conf modification by dhclient
   copy: src=dhclient_nodnsupdate dest=/etc/dhcp/dhclient-enter-hooks.d/znodnsupdate mode=0755
-  notify: Dnsmasq | restart network
+  notify: Preinstall | restart network
   when: ansible_os_family == "Debian"
 
 - name: disable resolv.conf modification by dhclient
   copy: src=dhclient_nodnsupdate dest=/etc/dhcp/dhclient.d/nodnsupdate mode=u+x
-  notify: Dnsmasq | restart network
+  notify: Preinstall | restart network
   when: ansible_os_family == "RedHat"
 
 - name: get temporary resolveconf cloud init file content
@@ -135,5 +165,5 @@
     src: resolvconf.j2
     owner: root
     mode: 0644
-  notify: Dnsmasq | update resolvconf for CoreOS
+  notify: Preinstall | update resolvconf for CoreOS
   when: ansible_os_family == "CoreOS"
diff --git a/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/set_facts.yml b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/set_facts.yml
index bd0d68aff..0f66acd14 100644
--- a/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/set_facts.yml
+++ b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/tasks/set_facts.yml
@@ -49,3 +49,6 @@
     etcd_after_v3: etcd_version | version_compare("v3.0.0", ">=")
 - set_fact:
     etcd_container_bin_dir: "{% if etcd_after_v3 %}/usr/local/bin/{% else %}/{% endif %}"
+- set_fact:
+    default_resolver: >-
+      {%- if cloud_provider is defined and cloud_provider == 'gce' -%}169.254.169.254{%- else -%}8.8.8.8{%- endif -%}
diff --git a/roles/dnsmasq/templates/resolvconf.j2 b/roles/kubernetes/preinstall/templates/resolvconf.j2
similarity index 100%
rename from roles/dnsmasq/templates/resolvconf.j2
rename to roles/kubernetes/preinstall/templates/resolvconf.j2
diff --git a/roles/network_plugin/flannel/handlers/main.yml b/roles/network_plugin/flannel/handlers/main.yml
index a503569f6..8fbb7f704 100644
--- a/roles/network_plugin/flannel/handlers/main.yml
+++ b/roles/network_plugin/flannel/handlers/main.yml
@@ -1,8 +1,42 @@
 ---
-- name: delete default docker bridge
+- name: Flannel | delete default docker bridge
   command: ip link delete docker0
   ignore_errors: yes
-  notify: restart docker
+  notify: Flannel | restart docker
+
+- name: Flannel | restart docker
+  command: /bin/true
+  notify:
+    - Flannel | reload systemd
+    - Flannel | reload docker.socket
+    - Flannel | reload docker
+    - Flannel | pause while Docker restarts
+    - Flannel | wait for docker
+
+- name : Flannel | reload systemd
+  shell: systemctl daemon-reload
+  when: ansible_service_mgr == "systemd"
+
+- name: Flannel | reload docker.socket
+  service:
+    name: docker.socket
+    state: restarted
+  when: ansible_os_family == 'CoreOS'
+
+- name: Flannel | reload docker
+  service:
+    name: docker
+    state: restarted
+
+- name: Flannel | pause while Docker restarts
+  pause: seconds=10 prompt="Waiting for docker restart"
+
+- name: Flannel | wait for docker
+  command: /usr/bin/docker images
+  register: docker_ready
+  retries: 10
+  delay: 5
+  until: docker_ready.rc == 0
 
 - name: Flannel | reload kubelet
   service:
diff --git a/roles/network_plugin/flannel/tasks/main.yml b/roles/network_plugin/flannel/tasks/main.yml
index 3e5eff8e8..f4ca65d12 100644
--- a/roles/network_plugin/flannel/tasks/main.yml
+++ b/roles/network_plugin/flannel/tasks/main.yml
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@
   template:
     src: flannel-pod.yml
     dest: /etc/kubernetes/manifests/flannel-pod.manifest
-  notify: delete default docker bridge
+  notify: Flannel | delete default docker bridge
 
 - name: Flannel | Wait for flannel subnet.env file presence
   wait_for:
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@
     group: root
     mode: 0644
   notify:
-    - restart docker
+    - Flannel | restart docker
   when: ansible_service_mgr in ["sysvinit","upstart"]
 
 - name: Flannel | Create docker network systemd drop-in
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@
     src: flannel-options.conf.j2
     dest: "/etc/systemd/system/docker.service.d/flannel-options.conf"
   notify:
-    - restart docker
+    - Flannel | restart docker
   when: ansible_service_mgr == "systemd"
 
 - meta: flush_handlers