diff --git a/src/hotspot/share/code/icBuffer.cpp b/src/hotspot/share/code/icBuffer.cpp
index 341ca85..8e0fee4 100644
--- a/src/hotspot/share/code/icBuffer.cpp
+++ b/src/hotspot/share/code/icBuffer.cpp
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ StubQueue* InlineCacheBuffer::_buffer    = NULL;
 
 CompiledICHolder* InlineCacheBuffer::_pending_released = NULL;
 int InlineCacheBuffer::_pending_count = 0;
+DEBUG_ONLY(volatile int InlineCacheBuffer::_needs_refill = 0;)
 
 void ICStub::finalize() {
   if (!is_empty()) {
@@ -116,6 +117,7 @@ ICStub* InlineCacheBuffer::new_ic_stub() {
 
 
 void InlineCacheBuffer::refill_ic_stubs() {
+  DEBUG_ONLY(Atomic::store(0, &_needs_refill));
   // we ran out of inline cache buffer space; must enter safepoint.
   // We do this by forcing a safepoint
   EXCEPTION_MARK;
@@ -133,6 +135,8 @@ void InlineCacheBuffer::refill_ic_stubs() {
 
 
 void InlineCacheBuffer::update_inline_caches() {
+  assert(_needs_refill == 0,
+         "Forgot to handle a failed IC transition requiring IC stubs");
   if (buffer()->number_of_stubs() > 0) {
     if (TraceICBuffer) {
       tty->print_cr("[updating inline caches with %d stubs]", buffer()->number_of_stubs());
@@ -169,6 +173,7 @@ bool InlineCacheBuffer::create_transition_stub(CompiledIC *ic, void* cached_valu
   // allocate and initialize new "out-of-line" inline-cache
   ICStub* ic_stub = new_ic_stub();
   if (ic_stub == NULL) {
+    DEBUG_ONLY(Atomic::inc(&_needs_refill));
     return false;
   }