diff --git a/Assistant/WebApp/Configurators/Ssh.hs b/Assistant/WebApp/Configurators/Ssh.hs
index 5ebbb5308a..182347a209 100644
--- a/Assistant/WebApp/Configurators/Ssh.hs
+++ b/Assistant/WebApp/Configurators/Ssh.hs
@@ -290,7 +290,7 @@ makeSsh' rsync setup sshdata keypair =
 	remoteCommand = shellWrap $ join "&&" $ catMaybes
 		[ Just $ "mkdir -p " ++ shellEscape remotedir
 		, Just $ "cd " ++ shellEscape remotedir
-		, if rsync then Nothing else Just "git init --bare --shared"
+		, if rsync then Nothing else Just "if [ ! -d .git ]; then git init --bare --shared; fi"
 		, if rsync then Nothing else Just "git annex init"
 		, if needsPubKey sshdata
 			then addAuthorizedKeysCommand (rsyncOnly sshdata) remotedir . sshPubKey <$> keypair
diff --git a/debian/changelog b/debian/changelog
index c0cba45ceb..8a50531671 100644
--- a/debian/changelog
+++ b/debian/changelog
@@ -13,6 +13,9 @@ git-annex (4.20130418) UNRELEASED; urgency=low
     don't have user.name set in git config, and put in a workaround
     so that commits to the git-annex branch (and the assistant)
     will still succeed despite git not liking the system configuration.
+  * webapp: When told to add a git repository on a remote server, and
+    the repository already exists as a non-bare repository, use it,
+    rather than initializing a bare repository in the same directory.
 
  -- Joey Hess <joeyh@debian.org>  Thu, 18 Apr 2013 16:22:48 -0400
 
diff --git a/doc/bugs/Adding_a_repository_as_a___34__remote_server__34___creates_a_bare_repository_next_to_the_existing_one.mdwn b/doc/bugs/Adding_a_repository_as_a___34__remote_server__34___creates_a_bare_repository_next_to_the_existing_one.mdwn
index 02513175c6..c2e05dee03 100644
--- a/doc/bugs/Adding_a_repository_as_a___34__remote_server__34___creates_a_bare_repository_next_to_the_existing_one.mdwn
+++ b/doc/bugs/Adding_a_repository_as_a___34__remote_server__34___creates_a_bare_repository_next_to_the_existing_one.mdwn
@@ -13,3 +13,9 @@ git-annex version: 4.20130324, Ubuntu 11.04
 **Please provide any additional information below.**
 
 [[!tag /design/assistant]]
+
+> I have made it check for the .git directory and reuse the existing
+> repository if it's there. [[done]] --[[Joey]]
+> 
+> (The comment about `git-annex-shell` is incorrect; it has nothing
+> to do with this.)