diff --git a/Makefile.in b/Makefile.in
index 76fbd93eb..2ac93ac6d 100644
--- a/Makefile.in
+++ b/Makefile.in
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ __silent_rmdir = $(call __silent,RMDIR,$1)rm -rf $1
 # Remove any suffix rules
 .SUFFIXES:
 
-all: Makefile build
+all: configure Makefile build
 
 ###############################################################################
 # Configuration variables
@@ -104,6 +104,10 @@ Makefile: Makefile.in
 	@echo "$< changed: you must re-run './configure'"
 	@false
 
+configure: configure.ac
+	@echo "$< changed: you must re-run './bootstrap'"
+	@false
+
 # If installing with DESTDIR, check it's an absolute path
 ifneq ($(strip $(DESTDIR)),)
   ifneq ($(DESTDIR),$(abspath /$(DESTDIR)))