diff --git a/configure.ac b/configure.ac
index 484d7fbd..7649f0be 100644
--- a/configure.ac
+++ b/configure.ac
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ AC_PROG_GREP
 AC_PROG_SED
 AC_CANONICAL_HOST
 AC_SYS_LARGEFILE
-gl_VISIBILITY
+ZNC_VISIBILITY
 
 appendLib () {
 	if test "$LIBS" != ""; then
diff --git a/m4/znc_visibility.m4 b/m4/znc_visibility.m4
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d47d529e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/m4/znc_visibility.m4
@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+# visibility.m4 serial 3 (gettext-0.18)
+dnl Copyright (C) 2005, 2008-2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
+dnl This file is free software; the Free Software Foundation
+dnl gives unlimited permission to copy and/or distribute it,
+dnl with or without modifications, as long as this notice is preserved.
+
+dnl From Bruno Haible.
+
+dnl Changes done by Uli Schlachter (C) 2011:
+dnl - Renamed everything from gl_ to znc_
+dnl - Instead of using CFLAGS, this now uses CXXFLAGS (the macro would actually
+dnl   silently break if you called AC_LANG with anything but C before it)
+dnl - Because of the above, this now requiers AC_PROG_CXX and $GXX instead
+dnl   of $GCC
+dnl - Added calls to AC_LANG_PUSH([C++]) and AC_LANG_POP
+dnl - Replaced AC_TRY_COMPILE with AC_COMPILE_IFELSE
+dnl - Added a definition for dummyfunc() so that this works with
+dnl   -Wmissing-declarations
+
+dnl Tests whether the compiler supports the command-line option
+dnl -fvisibility=hidden and the function and variable attributes
+dnl __attribute__((__visibility__("hidden"))) and
+dnl __attribute__((__visibility__("default"))).
+dnl Does *not* test for __visibility__("protected") - which has tricky
+dnl semantics (see the 'vismain' test in glibc) and does not exist e.g. on
+dnl MacOS X.
+dnl Does *not* test for __visibility__("internal") - which has processor
+dnl dependent semantics.
+dnl Does *not* test for #pragma GCC visibility push(hidden) - which is
+dnl "really only recommended for legacy code".
+dnl Set the variable CFLAG_VISIBILITY.
+dnl Defines and sets the variable HAVE_VISIBILITY.
+
+AC_DEFUN([ZNC_VISIBILITY],
+[
+  AC_REQUIRE([AC_PROG_CXX])
+  AC_LANG_PUSH([C++])
+  CFLAG_VISIBILITY=
+  HAVE_VISIBILITY=0
+  if test -n "$GXX"; then
+    dnl First, check whether -Werror can be added to the command line, or
+    dnl whether it leads to an error because of some other option that the
+    dnl user has put into $CC $CFLAGS $CPPFLAGS.
+    AC_MSG_CHECKING([whether the -Werror option is usable])
+    AC_CACHE_VAL([znc_cv_cc_vis_werror], [
+      znc_save_CXXFLAGS="$CXXFLAGS"
+      CXXFLAGS="$CXXFLAGS -Werror"
+      AC_COMPILE_IFELSE([AC_LANG_PROGRAM([], [])],
+        [znc_cv_cc_vis_werror=yes],
+        [znc_cv_cc_vis_werror=no])
+      CXXFLAGS="$znc_save_CXXFLAGS"])
+    AC_MSG_RESULT([$znc_cv_cc_vis_werror])
+    dnl Now check whether visibility declarations are supported.
+    AC_MSG_CHECKING([for simple visibility declarations])
+    AC_CACHE_VAL([znc_cv_cc_visibility], [
+      znc_save_CXXFLAGS="$CXXFLAGS"
+      CXXFLAGS="$CXXFLAGS -fvisibility=hidden"
+      dnl We use the option -Werror and a function dummyfunc, because on some
+      dnl platforms (Cygwin 1.7) the use of -fvisibility triggers a warning
+      dnl "visibility attribute not supported in this configuration; ignored"
+      dnl at the first function definition in every compilation unit, and we
+      dnl don't want to use the option in this case.
+      if test $znc_cv_cc_vis_werror = yes; then
+        CXXFLAGS="$CXXFLAGS -Werror"
+      fi
+      AC_COMPILE_IFELSE([AC_LANG_PROGRAM(
+       [[extern __attribute__((__visibility__("hidden"))) int hiddenvar;
+         extern __attribute__((__visibility__("default"))) int exportedvar;
+         extern __attribute__((__visibility__("hidden"))) int hiddenfunc (void);
+         extern __attribute__((__visibility__("default"))) int exportedfunc (void);
+         void dummyfunc (void) {}]],
+        [])],
+        [znc_cv_cc_visibility=yes],
+        [znc_cv_cc_visibility=no])
+      CXXFLAGS="$znc_save_CXXFLAGS"])
+    AC_MSG_RESULT([$znc_cv_cc_visibility])
+    if test $znc_cv_cc_visibility = yes; then
+      CFLAG_VISIBILITY="-fvisibility=hidden"
+      HAVE_VISIBILITY=1
+    fi
+  fi
+  AC_SUBST([CFLAG_VISIBILITY])
+  AC_SUBST([HAVE_VISIBILITY])
+  AC_DEFINE_UNQUOTED([HAVE_VISIBILITY], [$HAVE_VISIBILITY],
+    [Define to 1 or 0, depending whether the compiler supports simple visibility declarations.])
+  AC_LANG_POP
+])