diff --git a/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/.gitignore b/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..0f63e25c18
--- /dev/null
+++ b/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+.build.log
+nm-live-vm/
+nm-live-vm.tar.gz
+nm-live-vm-bundle.sh
diff --git a/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/build.sh b/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/build.sh
index d0d071fcb8..b308076b03 100755
--- a/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/build.sh
+++ b/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/build.sh
@@ -1,10 +1,36 @@
 #!/bin/bash
 
+
+set -vx
+
+die() {
+    echo "$@" >&2
+    exit 1
+}
+
+BASEDIR="$(readlink -f "$(dirname "$0")")"
+cd "$BASEDIR" || die "Could not switch directory."
+
+# copy output also to logfile
+exec > >(tee ./.build.log)
+exec 2>&1
+
+if git rev-parse --git-dir 2> /dev/null; then
+    INSIDE_GIT=1
+else
+    INSIDE_GIT=
+fi
+
 NAME="nm-live-vm"
-NM_BRANCH="master"
+if [[ $INSIDE_GIT ]]; then
+    NM_BRANCH="HEAD"
+else
+    NM_BRANCH=master
+fi
+
 BUILD_PACKAGES="qemu febootstrap mock rpmdevtools"
 ARCH=i386
-ROOT="fedora-18-$ARCH"
+ROOT="${ROOT:-"fedora-18-$ARCH"}"
 TREE="/var/lib/mock/$ROOT/root"
 PACKAGES="kernel passwd git autoconf automake libtool intltool gtk-doc libnl3-devel
     dbus-glib-devel libgudev1-devel libuuid-devel nss-devel ppp-devel dhclient
@@ -18,10 +44,13 @@ KERNEL=`basename "${KERNEL_URL%.rpm}"`
 #RELEASE="http://kojipkgs.fedoraproject.org/packages/fedora-release/18/1/noarch/fedora-release-18-1.noarch.rpm"
 #PACKAGES="systemd bash"
 
-test "$EUID" -eq 0 || { echo "$0 must be run as root"; exit 1; }
+check_root() {
+    test "$EUID" -eq 0
+}
 
 do_prepare() {
     echo "Installing build packages..."
+    check_root || die "$0 must be run as root"
     rpm -q $BUILD_PACKAGES || yum install $BUILD_PACKAGES || exit 1
     echo
 }
@@ -37,9 +66,22 @@ do_chroot() {
 
 do_build() {
     echo "Building NetworkManager..."
-    cp nm-make-script.sh $TREE/usr/local/sbin/nm-make-script || exit 1
-    mock -r "$ROOT" --chroot "/usr/local/sbin/nm-make-script $NM_BRANCH" || exit 1
-    test -f "$TREE/usr/sbin/NetworkManager" || ( echo "NetworkManager binary not found"; exit 1; )
+
+    if [[ $INSIDE_GIT ]]; then
+        # make first a local, bare clone of our git repository and copy it into the chroot.
+        # nm-make-script.sh will try to fetch from it first, to save bandwidth
+        GIT1="`git rev-parse --show-toplevel`"
+        GIT2="`mktemp --tmpdir -d nm.git-XXXXXXXXX`"
+        git clone --bare "$GIT1" "$GIT2" || die "Could not make local clone of git dir"
+        mock -r "$ROOT" --chroot 'rm -rf /NetworkManager-local.git'
+        mock -r "$ROOT" --copyin "$GIT2" "/NetworkManager-local.git" || die "Could not copy local repositoy"
+        rm -rf "$GIT2"
+    fi
+
+    # run the make script in chroot.
+    mock -r "$ROOT" --copyin nm-make-script.sh "/usr/local/sbin/" || exit 1
+    mock -r "$ROOT" --chroot "/usr/local/sbin/nm-make-script.sh \"$NM_BRANCH\"" || exit 1
+    test -f "$TREE/usr/sbin/NetworkManager" || die "NetworkManager binary not found"
     echo
 }
 
@@ -47,7 +89,8 @@ do_live_vm() {
     echo "Preparing kernel and initrd..." || exit 1
     mkdir -p $NAME || exit 1
     cp $TREE/boot/vmlinuz* $NAME/vmlinuz || exit 1
-    { ( cd "$TREE" && find -print0 | cpio -o0c ) || exit 1; } | gzip > $NAME/initramfs.img || exit 1
+    mock -r "$ROOT" --chroot "{ ( cd / ; find -not \( -path ./tmp/initramfs.img -o -path './var/cache/yum/*' -o -path './boot' -o -path './NetworkManager' \) -xdev -print0 | cpio -o0c ) || exit 1; } | gzip > /tmp/initramfs.img || exit 1" || die "error creating initramfs"
+    cp "$TREE/tmp/initramfs.img" "$NAME/" || exit 1
     cp run.sh $NAME/run.sh
 }
 
@@ -75,8 +118,12 @@ if [ "$1" = "-b" ]; then
     shift 2
 fi
 
+if [[ $INSIDE_GIT ]]; then
+    NM_BRANCH="$(git rev-parse -q --verify "$NM_BRANCH")" || die "Could not resolve branch $NM_BRANCH"
+fi
+
 if [ $# -eq 0 ]; then
-    do_prepare
+    check_root && do_prepare
     do_chroot
     do_build
     do_live_vm
diff --git a/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/nm-make-script.sh b/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/nm-make-script.sh
index d96e970301..bdd458db6b 100755
--- a/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/nm-make-script.sh
+++ b/contrib/fedora/nm-live-vm/nm-make-script.sh
@@ -1,14 +1,33 @@
 #!/bin/bash
 
-BRANCH=${1:-"master"}
-COMMIT=origin/$BRANCH
+set -vx
+
+die() {
+    echo "$@" >&2
+    exit 1
+}
+
+COMMIT=${1:-origin/master}
+
+URL="${2:-"git://anongit.freedesktop.org/NetworkManager/NetworkManager"}"
 
-cd /
 passwd -d root
-test -d NetworkManager || git clone git://anongit.freedesktop.org/NetworkManager/NetworkManager || exit 1
-cd NetworkManager/ || exit 1
-git fetch
-git checkout -f $COMMIT || exit 1
+test -d /NetworkManager || (
+    git init /NetworkManager
+    cd /NetworkManager
+
+    # check if there is a local git repository and fetch from it first (should be faster)
+    test -d "/NetworkManager-local.git" && (
+        git remote add local "/NetworkManager-local.git"
+        git fetch local
+        git remote remove local
+        rm -rf "/NetworkManager-local.git"
+    )
+    git remote add origin "$URL"
+)
+cd /NetworkManager/ || exit 1
+git fetch origin || die "Could not fetch $URL"
+git checkout -f "$COMMIT" || exit 1
 ./autogen.sh --prefix=/usr --exec-prefix=/usr --libdir=/usr/lib --sysconfdir=/etc --localstatedir=/var --enable-gtk-doc || exit 1
 make || exit 1
 #make check || exit 1