diff --git a/lib/vagrant/action/vm/nfs.rb b/lib/vagrant/action/vm/nfs.rb
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c7f0892c1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/vagrant/action/vm/nfs.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+module Vagrant
+  class Action
+    module VM
+      # Enables NFS based shared folders. `nfsd` must already be installed
+      # on the host machine, and NFS client must already be installed on
+      # the guest machine.
+      #
+      # This is a two part process:
+      #
+      #   1. Adds an entry to `/etc/exports` on the host machine using
+      #      the host class to export the proper folder to the proper
+      #      machine.
+      #   2. After boot, runs `mount` on the guest to mount the shared
+      #      folder.
+      #
+      class NFS
+        def initialize(app,env)
+          @app = app
+          @env = env
+
+          verify_host
+        end
+
+        # Verifies that the host is set and supports NFS.
+        def verify_host
+          return @env.error!(:nfs_host_required) if @env["host"].nil?
+          return @env.error!(:nfs_not_supported) if !@env["host"].nfs?
+        end
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/vagrant/hosts/base.rb b/lib/vagrant/hosts/base.rb
index 554de307a..02c46b758 100644
--- a/lib/vagrant/hosts/base.rb
+++ b/lib/vagrant/hosts/base.rb
@@ -50,6 +50,15 @@ module Vagrant
       def initialize(env)
         @env = env
       end
+
+      # Returns true of false denoting whether or not this host supports
+      # NFS shared folder setup. This method ideally should verify that
+      # NFS is installed.
+      #
+      # @return [Boolean]
+      def nfs?
+        false
+      end
     end
   end
 end
diff --git a/templates/strings.yml b/templates/strings.yml
index f2fc149c8..72457406b 100644
--- a/templates/strings.yml
+++ b/templates/strings.yml
@@ -137,6 +137,14 @@
   already be created, but unfortunately this vagrant still appears to
   have no box! You can setup the environment by setting up your
   <%= Vagrant::Environment::ROOTFILE_NAME %> and running `vagrant up`
+:nfs_host_required: |-
+  A host class is required for NFS shared folders. By default, these
+  are auto-detected, but can be overriden with `config.vagrant.host`.
+  There is currently not host class loaded.
+:nfs_not_supported: |-
+  The host class is reporting that NFS is not supported by this host,
+  or `nfsd` may not be installed. Please verify that `nfsd` is installed
+  on your machine, and retry.
 :network_not_found: |-
   The specified host network could not be found: <%= name %>.
   If the name specification is removed, Vagrant will create a new
diff --git a/test/vagrant/action/vm/nfs_test.rb b/test/vagrant/action/vm/nfs_test.rb
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e1f87e9a5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/vagrant/action/vm/nfs_test.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+require File.join(File.dirname(__FILE__), '..', '..', '..', 'test_helper')
+
+class NFSVMActionTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
+  setup do
+    @klass = Vagrant::Action::VM::NFS
+    @app, @env = mock_action_data
+
+    @vm = mock("vm")
+    @env.env.stubs(:host).returns(Vagrant::Hosts::Base.new(@env))
+    @env["vm"] = @vm
+
+    @internal_vm = mock("internal")
+    @vm.stubs(:vm).returns(@internal_vm)
+  end
+
+  context "with an instance" do
+    setup do
+      # Kind of dirty but not sure of a way around this
+      @klass.send(:alias_method, :verify_host_real, :verify_host)
+      @klass.any_instance.stubs(:verify_host)
+      @instance = @klass.new(@app, @env)
+    end
+
+    context "verifying host" do
+      should "error environment if host is nil" do
+        @env.env.stubs(:host).returns(nil)
+        @instance.verify_host_real
+        assert @env.error?
+        assert_equal :nfs_host_required, @env.error.first
+      end
+
+      should "error environment if host does not support NFS" do
+        @env.env.host.stubs(:nfs?).returns(false)
+        @instance.verify_host_real
+        assert @env.error?
+        assert_equal :nfs_not_supported, @env.error.first
+      end
+
+      should "be fine if everything passes" do
+        @env.env.host.stubs(:nfs?).returns(true)
+        @instance.verify_host_real
+        assert !@env.error?
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end