diff --git a/Jamfile b/Jamfile
index a664d891e..32a51cd18 100755
--- a/Jamfile
+++ b/Jamfile
@@ -161,6 +161,15 @@ rule linking ( properties * )
 	{
 		if <boost-link>static in $(properties)
 		{
+			if <link>shared in $(properties)
+			{
+				# if libtorrent is being built as a shared library
+				# but we're linking against boost statically, we still
+				# need to make boost think it's being built as a shared
+				# library, so that it properly exports its symbols
+				result += <define>BOOST_ALL_DYN_LINK ;
+			}
+
 			if <toolset>gcc in $(properties) && <link>shared in $(properties)
 			{
 				result += <fpic>on ;
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/config.hpp b/include/libtorrent/config.hpp
index 7775feb27..f484ef894 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/config.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/config.hpp
@@ -60,6 +60,11 @@ POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 #endif
 #endif
 
+#if defined TORRENT_BUILDING_SHARED
+# define TORRENT_EXPORT BOOST_SYMBOL_EXPORT
+#elif defined TORRENT_LINKING_SHARED
+# define TORRENT_EXPORT BOOST_SYMBOL_IMPORT
+#endif
 
 // ======= GCC =========
 
@@ -69,24 +74,10 @@ POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 #  define TORRENT_DEPRECATED __attribute__ ((deprecated))
 # endif
 
-// GCC pre 4.0 did not have support for the visibility attribute
-# if __GNUC__ >= 4
-#  if defined(TORRENT_BUILDING_SHARED) || defined(TORRENT_LINKING_SHARED)
-#   define TORRENT_EXPORT __attribute__ ((visibility("default")))
-#  endif
-# endif
-
-
 // ======= SUNPRO =========
 
 #elif defined __SUNPRO_CC
 
-# if __SUNPRO_CC >= 0x550
-#  if defined(TORRENT_BUILDING_SHARED) || defined(TORRENT_LINKING_SHARED)
-#   define TORRENT_EXPORT __global
-#  endif
-# endif
-
 // SunPRO seems to have an overly-strict
 // definition of POD types and doesn't
 // seem to allow boost::array in unions
@@ -107,12 +98,6 @@ POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 #pragma warning(disable: 4996)
 #define strdup _strdup
 
-# if defined(TORRENT_BUILDING_SHARED)
-#  define TORRENT_EXPORT __declspec(dllexport)
-# elif defined(TORRENT_LINKING_SHARED)
-#  define TORRENT_EXPORT __declspec(dllimport)
-# endif
-
 #define TORRENT_DEPRECATED_PREFIX __declspec(deprecated)
 
 #endif