diff --git a/config/opal_mca.m4 b/config/opal_mca.m4
index 935b8c65be2..4945b5e1cc1 100644
--- a/config/opal_mca.m4
+++ b/config/opal_mca.m4
@@ -167,6 +167,9 @@ of type-component pairs.  For example, --enable-mca-no-build=pml-ob1])
     # Second, set the DSO_all and STATIC_all variables.  conflict
     # resolution (prefer static) is done in the big loop below
     #
+    # Exception here is the components of the accelerator framework,
+    # which by default are built to be dynamic.
+    #
     AC_MSG_CHECKING([which components should be run-time loadable])
     if test "$enable_static" != "no"; then
         DSO_all=0
@@ -174,9 +177,6 @@ of type-component pairs.  For example, --enable-mca-no-build=pml-ob1])
     elif test "$OPAL_ENABLE_DLOPEN_SUPPORT" = 0; then
         DSO_all=0
         msg="none (dlopen disabled)"
-    elif test -z "$enable_mca_dso"; then
-        DSO_all=0
-        msg=default
     elif test "$enable_mca_dso" = "no"; then
         DSO_all=0
         msg=none
@@ -184,12 +184,19 @@ of type-component pairs.  For example, --enable-mca-no-build=pml-ob1])
         DSO_all=1
         msg=all
     else
+        if test -z "$enable_mca_dso"; then
+            enable_mca_dso="accelerator,btl-smcuda,rcache-gpusm,rcache-rgpusm"
+            AC_MSG_NOTICE([building accelerator framework compnents as DSOs (default)])
+        else
+            enable_mca_dso=$enable_mca_dso
+        fi
         DSO_all=0
         ifs_save="$IFS"
         IFS="${IFS}$PATH_SEPARATOR,"
         msg=
         for item in $enable_mca_dso; do
-            AS_VAR_SET([AS_TR_SH([DSO_$item])], [1])
+            str="`echo DSO_$item=1 | sed s/-/_/g`"
+            eval $str
             msg="$item $msg"
         done
         IFS="$ifs_save"