diff --git a/src/common/torint.h b/src/common/torint.h
index 07e291e51e..8018fd8894 100644
--- a/src/common/torint.h
+++ b/src/common/torint.h
@@ -18,6 +18,20 @@
 #ifdef HAVE_SYS_TYPES_H
 #include <sys/types.h>
 #endif
+#ifdef HAVE_LIMITS_H
+#include <limits.h>
+#endif
+#ifdef HAVE_SYS_LIMITS_H
+#include <sys/limits.h>
+#endif
+#ifdef HAVE_MACHINE_LIMITS_H
+#ifndef __FreeBSD__
+  /* FreeBSD has a bug where it complains that this file is obsolete,
+     and I should migrate to using sys/limits. It complains even when
+     I include both. */
+#include <machine/limits.h>
+#endif
+#endif
 
 
 #if (SIZEOF_INT8_T != 0)
@@ -180,6 +194,31 @@ typedef uint32_t uintptr_t;
 #error "Missing type uint64_t"
 #endif
 
+/* XXXX This assumes a sane (2's-complement) representation.  But if you
+ *  aren't 2's complement, and you don't define LONG_MAX, then you're so
+ *  bizarre that I want nothing to do with you. */
+#ifndef LONG_MAX
+#if (SIZEOF_LONG == 4)
+#define LONG_MAX 0x7fffffffL
+#elif (SIZEOF_LONG == 8)
+#define LONG_MAX 0x7fffffffffffffffL
+#else
+#error "Can't define LONG_MAX"
+#endif
+#endif
+
+#ifndef UINT_MAX
+#if (SIZEOF_INT == 2)
+#define UINT_MAX 0xffffu
+#elif (SIZEOF_INT == 4)
+#define UINT_MAX 0xffffffffu
+#elif (SIZEOF_INT == 8)
+#define UINT_MAX 0xffffffffffffffffu
+#else
+#error "Can't define UINT_MAX"
+#endif
+#endif
+
 #endif /* __TORINT_H */
 
 /*
diff --git a/src/common/util.c b/src/common/util.c
index 36a8048d2a..4886f9b103 100644
--- a/src/common/util.c
+++ b/src/common/util.c
@@ -874,12 +874,6 @@ tv_udiff(struct timeval *start, struct timeval *end)
   long udiff;
   long secdiff = end->tv_sec - start->tv_sec;
 
-/* XXX some SunOS machines don't have LONG_MAX defined in the includes
- * we use. Surely there is a better fix... */
-#ifndef LONG_MAX
-#define LONG_MAX 2147483647L
-#endif
-
   if (secdiff+1 > LONG_MAX/1000000) {
     log_fn(LOG_WARN, "comparing times too far apart.");
     return LONG_MAX;