diff --git a/src/p2p/net_node.inl b/src/p2p/net_node.inl
index 269a9ba87..142351801 100644
--- a/src/p2p/net_node.inl
+++ b/src/p2p/net_node.inl
@@ -1107,7 +1107,7 @@ namespace nodetool
   template<class t_payload_net_handler>
   bool node_server<t_payload_net_handler>::connect_to_seed()
   {
-      if (m_seed_nodes.empty() || m_offline)
+      if (m_seed_nodes.empty() || m_offline || !m_exclusive_peers.empty())
         return true;
 
       size_t try_count = 0;