diff --git a/package/skeleton-systemd/skeleton-systemd.mk b/package/skeleton-systemd/skeleton-systemd.mk
index 384715e1c9..860ebea2cd 100644
--- a/package/skeleton-systemd/skeleton-systemd.mk
+++ b/package/skeleton-systemd/skeleton-systemd.mk
@@ -15,11 +15,57 @@ SKELETON_SYSTEMD_DEPENDENCIES = skeleton-common
 
 SKELETON_SYSTEMD_PROVIDES = skeleton
 
+ifeq ($(BR2_TARGET_GENERIC_REMOUNT_ROOTFS_RW),y)
+
+define SKELETON_SYSTEMD_ROOT_RO_OR_RW
+	echo "/dev/root / auto rw 0 1" >$(TARGET_DIR)/etc/fstab
+	mkdir -p $(TARGET_DIR)/var
+endef
+
+else
+
+# On a R/O rootfs, /var is a tmpfs filesystem. So, at build time, we
+# redirect /var to the "factory settings" location. Just before the
+# filesystem gets created, the /var symlink will be replaced with
+# a real (but empty) directory, and the "factory files" will be copied
+# back there by the tmpfiles.d mechanism.
+define SKELETON_SYSTEMD_ROOT_RO_OR_RW
+	mkdir -p $(TARGET_DIR)/etc/systemd/tmpfiles.d
+	mkdir -p $(TARGET_DIR)/usr/share/factory/var
+	ln -s usr/share/factory/var $(TARGET_DIR)/var
+	echo "/dev/root / auto ro 0 1" >$(TARGET_DIR)/etc/fstab
+	echo "tmpfs /var tmpfs mode=1777 0 0" >>$(TARGET_DIR)/etc/fstab
+endef
+
+define SKELETON_SYSTEMD_PRE_ROOTFS_VAR
+	rm -f $(TARGET_DIR)/var
+	mkdir $(TARGET_DIR)/var
+	for i in $(TARGET_DIR)/usr/share/factory/var/*; do \
+		j="$${i#$(TARGET_DIR)/usr/share/factory}"; \
+		if [ -L "$${i}" ]; then \
+			printf "L+! %s - - - - %s\n" \
+				"$${j}" "../usr/share/factory/$${j}" \
+			|| exit 1; \
+		else \
+			printf "C! %s - - - -\n" "$${j}" \
+			|| exit 1; \
+		fi; \
+	done >$(TARGET_DIR)/etc/tmpfiles.d/var-factory.conf
+endef
+SKELETON_SYSTEMD_ROOTFS_PRE_CMD_HOOKS += SKELETON_SYSTEMD_PRE_ROOTFS_VAR
+
+define SKELETON_SYSTEMD_POST_ROOTFS_VAR
+	rm -rf $(TARGET_DIR)/var
+	ln -s usr/share/factory/var $(TARGET_DIR)/var
+endef
+SKELETON_SYSTEMD_ROOTFS_POST_CMD_HOOKS += SKELETON_SYSTEMD_POST_ROOTFS_VAR
+
+endif
+
 define SKELETON_SYSTEMD_INSTALL_TARGET_CMDS
 	mkdir -p $(TARGET_DIR)/home
 	mkdir -p $(TARGET_DIR)/srv
-	mkdir -p $(TARGET_DIR)/var
-	echo "/dev/root / auto rw 0 1" >$(TARGET_DIR)/etc/fstab
+	$(SKELETON_SYSTEMD_ROOT_RO_OR_RW)
 endef
 
 $(eval $(generic-package))
diff --git a/system/Config.in b/system/Config.in
index 5716abd3cf..59d8eab271 100644
--- a/system/Config.in
+++ b/system/Config.in
@@ -136,7 +136,6 @@ config BR2_INIT_SYSTEMD
 	depends on BR2_TOOLCHAIN_HEADERS_AT_LEAST_3_10
 	select BR2_ROOTFS_MERGED_USR
 	select BR2_PACKAGE_SYSTEMD
-	select BR2_TARGET_GENERIC_REMOUNT_ROOTFS_RW if BR2_ROOTFS_SKELETON_DEFAULT
 
 comment "systemd needs a glibc toolchain, headers >= 3.10"
 	depends on !(BR2_TOOLCHAIN_USES_GLIBC \