diff --git a/src/bio_helper.c b/src/bio_helper.c
index 4738bd33..0c33569e 100644
--- a/src/bio_helper.c
+++ b/src/bio_helper.c
@@ -325,11 +325,15 @@ struct inode *page_get_inode(struct page *pg)
         return pg->mapping->host;
 }
 
-int bio_needs_cow(struct bio *bio, struct inode *inode)
+int bio_needs_cow(struct bio *bio, struct snap_device *dev)
 {
         bio_iter_t iter;
         bio_iter_bvec_t bvec;
 
+        if (!test_bit(SD_FLAG_COW_RESIDENT, &dev->sd_flags)) {
+                return 1; // if the cow is non-resident, then we don't need to check if the bio is for the cow file.
+        }
+
 #ifdef HAVE_ENUM_REQ_OPF
         //#if LINUX_VERSION_CODE >= KERNEL_VERSION(4,10,0)
         if (bio_op(bio) == REQ_OP_WRITE_ZEROES)
@@ -339,7 +343,7 @@ int bio_needs_cow(struct bio *bio, struct inode *inode)
         // check the inode of each page return true if it does not match our cow
         // file
         bio_for_each_segment (bvec, bio, iter) {
-                if (page_get_inode(bio_iter_page(bio, iter)) != inode)
+                if (page_get_inode(bio_iter_page(bio, iter)) != dev->sd_cow_inode)
                         return 1;
         }
 
diff --git a/src/bio_helper.h b/src/bio_helper.h
index 145e70f1..5c0b451b 100644
--- a/src/bio_helper.h
+++ b/src/bio_helper.h
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ void dattobd_bio_op_clear_flag(struct bio *bio, unsigned int flag);
 
 struct inode *page_get_inode(struct page *pg);
 
-int bio_needs_cow(struct bio *bio, struct inode *inode);
+int bio_needs_cow(struct bio *bio, struct snap_device *dev);
 
 void bio_free_clone(struct bio *bio);
 
diff --git a/src/ioctl_handlers.c b/src/ioctl_handlers.c
index cb5a6dae..2f52071a 100644
--- a/src/ioctl_handlers.c
+++ b/src/ioctl_handlers.c
@@ -59,6 +59,7 @@ int __verify_minor(unsigned int minor, int mode)
                 }
 
                 // check that the device is not busy if we care
+                smp_mb();
                 if (mode == 1 && atomic_read(&snap_devices[minor]->sd_refs)) {
                         LOG_ERROR(-EBUSY, "device specified is busy");
                         return -EBUSY;
diff --git a/src/proc_seq_file.c b/src/proc_seq_file.c
index b73c25cd..21df7811 100644
--- a/src/proc_seq_file.c
+++ b/src/proc_seq_file.c
@@ -91,6 +91,8 @@ static int dattobd_proc_show(struct seq_file *m, void *v)
                 seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"minor\": %u,\n", dev->sd_minor);
                 seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"cow_file\": \"%s\",\n",
                            dev->sd_cow_path);
+                seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"full_cow_path\": \"%s\",\n",
+                           dev->sd_cow_full_path);
                 seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"block_device\": \"%s\",\n",
                            dev->sd_bdev_path);
                 seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"max_cache\": %lu,\n",
@@ -133,7 +135,8 @@ static int dattobd_proc_show(struct seq_file *m, void *v)
                 if (error)
                         seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"error\": %d,\n", error);
 
-                seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"state\": %lu\n", dev->sd_state);
+                seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"state\": %lu,\n", dev->sd_state);
+                seq_printf(m, "\t\t\t\"resident\": %d\n", test_bit(SD_FLAG_COW_RESIDENT, &dev->sd_flags));
                 seq_printf(m, "\t\t}");
         }
 
diff --git a/src/snap_device.h b/src/snap_device.h
index e877ed60..b64d5a9c 100644
--- a/src/snap_device.h
+++ b/src/snap_device.h
@@ -16,9 +16,13 @@
 #define ACTIVE 1
 #define UNVERIFIED 2
 
+// macros for defining the flags of a snap_device (bit offsets)
+#define SD_FLAG_COW_RESIDENT 0 // the cow file exists on the backing device
+
 struct snap_device {
         unsigned int sd_minor; // minor number of the snapshot
         unsigned long sd_state; // current state of the snapshot
+        unsigned long sd_flags; // flags
         unsigned long sd_falloc_size; // space allocated to the cow file (in
                 // megabytes)
         unsigned long sd_cache_size; // maximum cache size (in bytes)
@@ -31,7 +35,8 @@ struct snap_device {
         struct block_device *sd_base_dev; // device being snapshot
         char *sd_bdev_path; // base device file path
         struct cow_manager *sd_cow; // cow manager
-        char *sd_cow_path; // cow file path
+        char *sd_cow_path; // deprecated: cow file path
+        char *sd_cow_full_path; // full cow file path
         struct inode *sd_cow_inode; // cow file inode
         make_request_fn
                 *sd_orig_mrf; // block device's original make request function
diff --git a/src/snap_ops.c b/src/snap_ops.c
index 185f317f..e2fff005 100644
--- a/src/snap_ops.c
+++ b/src/snap_ops.c
@@ -14,7 +14,9 @@ static int __tracer_add_ref(struct snap_device *dev, int ref_cnt)
                 goto error;
         }
 
+        smp_mb();
         atomic_add(ref_cnt, &dev->sd_refs);
+        smp_mb();
 
 error:
         return ret;
diff --git a/src/system_call_hooking.c b/src/system_call_hooking.c
index aabe9e6a..c715dbcb 100644
--- a/src/system_call_hooking.c
+++ b/src/system_call_hooking.c
@@ -90,16 +90,11 @@ int __handle_bdev_mount_nowrite(const struct vfsmount *mnt,
                     dev->sd_base_dev != mnt->mnt_sb->s_bdev)
                         continue;
 
-                // if we are unmounting the vfsmount we are using go to dormant
-                // state
-                if (mnt == dattobd_get_mnt(dev->sd_cow->filp)) {
-                        LOG_DEBUG("block device umount detected for device %d",
-                                  i);
-                        auto_transition_dormant(i);
+                LOG_DEBUG("block device umount detected for device %d", i);
+                auto_transition_dormant(i);
 
-                        ret = 0;
-                        goto out;
-                }
+                ret = 0;
+                goto out;
         }
         i = 0;
         ret = -ENODEV;
diff --git a/src/tracer.c b/src/tracer.c
index 842a56fe..205d4395 100644
--- a/src/tracer.c
+++ b/src/tracer.c
@@ -24,6 +24,9 @@
 #include <linux/percpu-refcount.h>
 #endif
 
+#define FUSEBLK_MNT_NAME "fuseblk"
+#define FUSEBLK_MNT_LEN 7
+
 #if !defined(HAVE_BDEV_STACK_LIMITS) && !defined(HAVE_BLK_SET_DEFAULT_LIMITS)
 //#if LINUX_VERSION_CODE < KERNEL_VERSION(2,6,31)
 
@@ -159,7 +162,7 @@ static int snap_trace_bio(struct snap_device *dev, struct bio *bio)
         unsigned int bytes, pages;
 
         // if we don't need to cow this bio just call the real mrf normally
-        if (!bio_needs_cow(bio, dev->sd_cow_inode))
+        if (!bio_needs_cow(bio, dev))
                 return dattobd_call_mrf(dev->sd_orig_mrf,
                                         dattobd_bio_get_queue(bio), bio);
 
@@ -255,6 +258,14 @@ static int inc_trace_bio(struct snap_device *dev, struct bio *bio)
         bio_iter_t iter;
         bio_iter_bvec_t bvec;
 
+        if (!test_bit(SD_FLAG_COW_RESIDENT, &dev->sd_flags)) {
+                // if the cow is non-resident, then we don't need to check if
+                // the bio is for the cow file.
+                ret = inc_make_sset(dev, bio_sector(bio),
+                                    bio_size(bio) / SECTOR_SIZE);
+                goto out;
+        }
+
 #ifdef HAVE_ENUM_REQ_OPF
         //#if LINUX_VERSION_CODE >= KERNEL_VERSION(4,10,0)
         if (bio_op(bio) == REQ_OP_WRITE_ZEROES) {
@@ -361,7 +372,9 @@ static void minor_range_include(unsigned int minor)
 static void __tracer_init(struct snap_device *dev)
 {
         LOG_DEBUG("initializing tracer");
+        smp_mb();
         atomic_set(&dev->sd_fail_code, 0);
+        smp_mb();
         bio_queue_init(&dev->sd_cow_bios);
         bio_queue_init(&dev->sd_orig_bios);
         sset_queue_init(&dev->sd_pending_ssets);
@@ -430,6 +443,7 @@ static int __tracer_setup_cow(struct snap_device *dev,
         int ret;
         uint64_t max_file_size;
         char bdev_name[BDEVNAME_SIZE];
+        char fuseblk_name[] = FUSEBLK_MNT_NAME;
 
         bdevname(bdev, bdev_name);
 
@@ -483,11 +497,23 @@ static int __tracer_setup_cow(struct snap_device *dev,
                 }
         }
 
-        // verify that file is on block device
-        if (!file_is_on_bdev(dev->sd_cow->filp, bdev)) {
-                ret = -EINVAL;
-                LOG_ERROR(ret, "'%s' is not on '%s'", cow_path, bdev_name);
-                goto error;
+        if (file_is_on_bdev(dev->sd_cow->filp, bdev)) {
+                set_bit(SD_FLAG_COW_RESIDENT, &dev->sd_flags);
+                /* Cow file should not be on the same device as a fuse fs.
+                 * This is because the typical setup for a fuse device involves
+                 * calling mount() and /then/ setting its ioctl callbacks (open
+                 * is of specific interest). Dormant- or unverified-to-active
+                 * transitions cause a deadlock because open will be called in
+                 * the mount syscall where the fuse device's callbacks won't
+                 * have been set yet. We prevent this from happening by not
+                 * allowing it in the first place. */
+                if (0 == strncmp(bdev->bd_super->s_type->name, fuseblk_name,
+                                 FUSEBLK_MNT_LEN)) {
+                        ret = -EDEADLOCK;
+                        LOG_ERROR(ret, "Cow file cannot be on same volume for"
+                                  " fuse filesystems");
+                        return ret;
+                }
         }
 
         // find the cow file's inode number
@@ -627,6 +653,12 @@ static void __tracer_destroy_cow_path(struct snap_device *dev)
                 kfree(dev->sd_cow_path);
                 dev->sd_cow_path = NULL;
         }
+
+        if (dev->sd_cow_full_path) {
+                LOG_DEBUG("freeing full cow path");
+                kfree(dev->sd_cow_full_path);
+                dev->sd_cow_full_path = NULL;
+        }
 }
 
 static int __tracer_setup_cow_path(struct snap_device *dev,
@@ -635,6 +667,11 @@ static int __tracer_setup_cow_path(struct snap_device *dev,
         int ret;
 
         // get the pathname of the cow file (relative to the mountpoint)
+        LOG_DEBUG("getting absolute pathname of cow file");
+        ret = file_get_absolute_pathname(cow_file, &dev->sd_cow_full_path, NULL);
+        if (ret)
+                goto error;
+
         LOG_DEBUG("getting relative pathname of cow file");
         ret = dentry_get_relative_pathname(dattobd_get_dentry(cow_file),
                                            &dev->sd_cow_path, NULL);
@@ -1579,16 +1616,20 @@ void __tracer_dormant_to_active(struct snap_device *dev,
                                 const char __user *user_mount_path)
 {
         int ret;
+        char *resident_cow_path;
         char *cow_path;
 
         // generate the full pathname
         ret = user_mount_pathname_concat(user_mount_path, dev->sd_cow_path,
-                                         &cow_path);
+                                         &resident_cow_path);
         if (ret)
                 goto error;
 
+        cow_path = test_bit(SD_FLAG_COW_RESIDENT, &dev->sd_flags) ? resident_cow_path : dev->sd_cow_full_path;
+
         // setup the cow manager
         ret = __tracer_setup_cow_reopen(dev, dev->sd_base_dev, cow_path);
+        kfree(resident_cow_path);
         if (ret)
                 goto error;
 
@@ -1608,13 +1649,9 @@ void __tracer_dormant_to_active(struct snap_device *dev,
         set_bit(ACTIVE, &dev->sd_state);
         clear_bit(UNVERIFIED, &dev->sd_state);
 
-        kfree(cow_path);
-
         return;
 
 error:
         LOG_ERROR(ret, "error transitioning tracer to active state");
-        if (cow_path)
-                kfree(cow_path);
         tracer_set_fail_state(dev, ret);
 }
diff --git a/src/tracing_params.c b/src/tracing_params.c
index beab8181..9c959036 100644
--- a/src/tracing_params.c
+++ b/src/tracing_params.c
@@ -28,7 +28,9 @@ int tp_alloc(struct snap_device *dev, struct bio *bio,
         tp->orig_bio = bio;
         tp->bio_sects.head = NULL;
         tp->bio_sects.tail = NULL;
+        smp_mb();
         atomic_set(&tp->refs, 1);
+        smp_mb();
 
         *tp_out = tp;
         return 0;
@@ -36,7 +38,9 @@ int tp_alloc(struct snap_device *dev, struct bio *bio,
 
 void tp_get(struct tracing_params *tp)
 {
+        smp_mb();
         atomic_inc(&tp->refs);
+        smp_mb();
 }
 
 void tp_put(struct tracing_params *tp)
diff --git a/tests/test_setup.py b/tests/test_setup.py
index f61100b8..b7e52dc4 100644
--- a/tests/test_setup.py
+++ b/tests/test_setup.py
@@ -38,10 +38,11 @@ def test_setup_cow_file_path_is_dir(self):
         self.assertFalse(os.path.exists(self.snap_device))
         self.assertIsNone(dattobd.info(self.minor))
 
-    def test_setup_cow_file_on_wrong_device(self):
-        self.assertEqual(dattobd.setup(self.minor, self.device, "/tmp/{}".format(self.cow_file)), errno.EINVAL)
-        self.assertFalse(os.path.exists(self.snap_device))
-        self.assertIsNone(dattobd.info(self.minor))
+    def test_setup_cow_file_on_other_device(self):
+        self.assertEqual(dattobd.setup(self.minor, self.device, "/tmp/{}".format(self.cow_file)), 0)
+        self.addCleanup(dattobd.destroy, self.minor)
+        self.assertTrue(os.path.exists(self.snap_device))
+        self.assertIsNotNone(dattobd.info(self.minor))
 
     def test_setup_unmounted_volume(self):
         util.unmount(self.mount)