diff --git a/fs/nfs/direct.c b/fs/nfs/direct.c
index 32fe97211eea..afcab007a22b 100644
--- a/fs/nfs/direct.c
+++ b/fs/nfs/direct.c
@@ -549,13 +549,13 @@ static void nfs_direct_write_result(struct rpc_task *task, void *calldata)
 
 	spin_lock(&dreq->lock);
 
-	if (unlikely(dreq->error != 0))
-		goto out_unlock;
 	if (unlikely(status < 0)) {
-		/* An error has occured, so we should not commit */
+		/* An error has occurred, so we should not commit */
 		dreq->flags = 0;
 		dreq->error = status;
 	}
+	if (unlikely(dreq->error != 0))
+		goto out_unlock;
 
 	dreq->count += data->res.count;