diff --git a/xCAT-test/unit/deprecated_provisioning_reachability.t b/xCAT-test/unit/deprecated_provisioning_reachability.t
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b1df7911e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/xCAT-test/unit/deprecated_provisioning_reachability.t
@@ -0,0 +1,84 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env perl
+use strict;
+use warnings;
+
+use FindBin;
+use File::Spec;
+use Test::More;
+
+my $repo_root = File::Spec->catdir( $FindBin::Bin, '..', '..' );
+
+sub slurp {
+    my ($rel) = @_;
+    my $path = File::Spec->catfile( $repo_root, $rel );
+    return unless -r $path;
+    open( my $fh, '<', $path ) or die "Unable to read $path: $!";
+    my $c = do { local $/; <$fh> };
+    close($fh);
+    return $c;
+}
+
+# Report statements that sit after an unconditional return inside the same
+# block. Those are unreachable, which is how the deprecated provisioning paths
+# survived in the tree for years after they stopped running.
+sub unreachable_after_return {
+    my ($source) = @_;
+    my @lines = split( /\n/, $source, -1 );
+    my @found;
+    for my $i ( 0 .. $#lines ) {
+        my ($indent) = $lines[$i] =~ /^(\s*)(?:return\s*;|return\s+\d+\s*;)\s*$/;
+        next unless defined $indent;
+        my $depth = length($indent);
+        for my $j ( $i + 1 .. $#lines ) {
+            my $next = $lines[$j];
+            next if $next =~ /^\s*$/ || $next =~ /^\s*#/;
+            my ($ni) = $next =~ /^(\s*)/;
+            last if length($ni) < $depth;
+            last if $next =~ /^\s*[}\]\)]/;
+            push @found, ( $j + 1 ) . ": $next";
+            last;
+        }
+    }
+    return @found;
+}
+
+my $destiny = slurp('xCAT-server/lib/xcat/plugins/destiny.pm');
+my $packimage = slurp('xCAT-server/lib/xcat/plugins/packimage.pm');
+
+plan skip_all => 'destiny.pm or packimage.pm not found'
+  unless defined($destiny) && defined($packimage);
+
+my @destiny_dead = unreachable_after_return($destiny);
+is_deeply( \@destiny_dead, [], 'destiny.pm has no statements after an unconditional return' );
+
+my @packimage_dead = unreachable_after_return($packimage);
+is_deeply( \@packimage_dead, [], 'packimage.pm has no statements after an unconditional return' );
+
+# The deprecated states must still be rejected. Removing the dead path below the
+# rejection must not remove the rejection itself.
+like(
+    $destiny,
+    qr/have been deprecated, use \\"osimage=/,
+    'the deprecated nodeset states are still rejected'
+);
+
+# packimage rejects -o, -p and -a up front, so nothing after that point can ask
+# for them again. The old no-imagename branch demanded -o, which could never be
+# supplied, and reported that as the error.
+unlike(
+    $packimage,
+    qr/Please specify a os version with the -o flag/,
+    'packimage no longer asks for an option it rejects earlier'
+);
+like(
+    $packimage,
+    qr/-o, -p and -a options are obsoleted/,
+    'packimage still rejects the deprecated options'
+);
+like(
+    $packimage,
+    qr/An image name is required/,
+    'packimage reports the missing image name instead'
+);
+
+done_testing();