diff --git a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/CHANGES.txt b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/CHANGES.txt
index 40c9875cc7f..b4f15daa7bf 100644
--- a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/CHANGES.txt
+++ b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/CHANGES.txt
@@ -187,6 +187,9 @@ Release 2.0.3-alpha - Unreleased
     HADOOP-8994. TestDFSShell creates file named "noFileHere", making further
     tests hard to understand (Andy Isaacson via daryn)
 
+    HDFS-3804.  TestHftpFileSystem fails intermittently with JDK7
+    (Trevor Robinson via daryn)
+
 Release 2.0.2-alpha - 2012-09-07 
   
   INCOMPATIBLE CHANGES
diff --git a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/test/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/TestHftpFileSystem.java b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/test/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/TestHftpFileSystem.java
index 6cb0ad1ce83..af62f3ca30e 100644
--- a/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/test/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/TestHftpFileSystem.java
+++ b/hadoop-hdfs-project/hadoop-hdfs/src/test/java/org/apache/hadoop/hdfs/TestHftpFileSystem.java
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ import org.apache.hadoop.conf.Configuration;
 import org.apache.hadoop.fs.BlockLocation;
 import org.apache.hadoop.fs.FSDataInputStream;
 import org.apache.hadoop.fs.FSDataOutputStream;
+import org.apache.hadoop.fs.FileStatus;
 import org.apache.hadoop.fs.FileSystem;
 import org.apache.hadoop.fs.Path;
 import org.apache.hadoop.hdfs.server.datanode.DataNode;
@@ -42,18 +43,17 @@ import org.apache.hadoop.hdfs.server.datanode.DataNodeTestUtils;
 import org.apache.hadoop.hdfs.server.protocol.DatanodeRegistration;
 import org.apache.hadoop.util.ServletUtil;
 import org.apache.log4j.Level;
-import org.junit.AfterClass;
-import org.junit.BeforeClass;
-import org.junit.Test;
+import org.junit.*;
 
 public class TestHftpFileSystem {
   private static final Random RAN = new Random();
   
   private static Configuration config = null;
   private static MiniDFSCluster cluster = null;
-  private static FileSystem hdfs = null;
-  private static HftpFileSystem hftpFs = null;
   private static String blockPoolId = null;
+  private static String hftpUri = null;
+  private FileSystem hdfs = null;
+  private HftpFileSystem hftpFs = null;
 
   private static Path[] TEST_PATHS = new Path[] {
       // URI does not encode, Request#getPathInfo returns /foo
@@ -93,26 +93,33 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
 
     config = new Configuration();
     cluster = new MiniDFSCluster.Builder(config).numDataNodes(2).build();
-    hdfs = cluster.getFileSystem();
     blockPoolId = cluster.getNamesystem().getBlockPoolId();
-    final String hftpUri = 
+    hftpUri = 
       "hftp://" + config.get(DFSConfigKeys.DFS_NAMENODE_HTTP_ADDRESS_KEY);
-    hftpFs = (HftpFileSystem) new Path(hftpUri).getFileSystem(config);
   }
   
   @AfterClass
   public static void tearDown() throws IOException {
-    if (hdfs != null) {
-      hdfs.close();
-    }
-    if (hftpFs != null) {
-      hftpFs.close();
-    }
     if (cluster != null) {
       cluster.shutdown();
     }
   }
+  
+  @Before
+  public void initFileSystems() throws IOException {
+    hdfs = cluster.getFileSystem();
+    hftpFs = (HftpFileSystem) new Path(hftpUri).getFileSystem(config);
+    // clear out the namespace
+    for (FileStatus stat : hdfs.listStatus(new Path("/"))) {
+      hdfs.delete(stat.getPath(), true);
+    }
+  }
 
+  @After
+  public void resetFileSystems() throws IOException {
+    FileSystem.closeAll();
+  }
+  
   /**
    * Test file creation and access with file names that need encoding. 
    */
@@ -280,19 +287,8 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
     assertEquals("Stream closed", ioe.getMessage());
   }
   
-  public void resetFileSystem() throws IOException {
-    // filesystem caching has a quirk/bug that it caches based on the user's
-    // given uri.  the result is if a filesystem is instantiated with no port,
-    // it gets the default port.  then if the default port is changed,
-    // and another filesystem is instantiated with no port, the prior fs
-    // is returned, not a new one using the changed port.  so let's flush
-    // the cache between tests...
-    FileSystem.closeAll();
-  }
-  
   @Test
   public void testHftpDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     URI uri = URI.create("hftp://localhost");
     HftpFileSystem fs = (HftpFileSystem) FileSystem.get(uri, conf);
@@ -309,7 +305,6 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
   
   @Test
   public void testHftpCustomDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     conf.setInt("dfs.http.port", 123);
     conf.setInt("dfs.https.port", 456);
@@ -329,7 +324,6 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
 
   @Test
   public void testHftpCustomUriPortWithDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     URI uri = URI.create("hftp://localhost:123");
     HftpFileSystem fs = (HftpFileSystem) FileSystem.get(uri, conf);
@@ -346,7 +340,6 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
 
   @Test
   public void testHftpCustomUriPortWithCustomDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     conf.setInt("dfs.http.port", 123);
     conf.setInt("dfs.https.port", 456);
@@ -368,7 +361,6 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
 
   @Test
   public void testHsftpDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     URI uri = URI.create("hsftp://localhost");
     HsftpFileSystem fs = (HsftpFileSystem) FileSystem.get(uri, conf);
@@ -385,7 +377,6 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
 
   @Test
   public void testHsftpCustomDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     conf.setInt("dfs.http.port", 123);
     conf.setInt("dfs.https.port", 456);
@@ -405,7 +396,6 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
 
   @Test
   public void testHsftpCustomUriPortWithDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     URI uri = URI.create("hsftp://localhost:123");
     HsftpFileSystem fs = (HsftpFileSystem) FileSystem.get(uri, conf);
@@ -422,7 +412,6 @@ public class TestHftpFileSystem {
 
   @Test
   public void testHsftpCustomUriPortWithCustomDefaultPorts() throws IOException {
-    resetFileSystem();
     Configuration conf = new Configuration();
     conf.setInt("dfs.http.port", 123);
     conf.setInt("dfs.https.port", 456);