diff --git a/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/dispatch/BalancingDispatcher.scala b/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/dispatch/BalancingDispatcher.scala
index e85ee21932..db2e7a7885 100644
--- a/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/dispatch/BalancingDispatcher.scala
+++ b/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/dispatch/BalancingDispatcher.scala
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ import scala.concurrent.duration.FiniteDuration
 
 /**
  * INTERNAL API: Use `BalancingPool` instead of this dispatcher directly.
- * 
+ *
  * An executor based event driven dispatcher which will try to redistribute work from busy actors to idle actors. It is assumed
  * that all actors using the same instance of this dispatcher can process all messages that have been sent to one of the actors. I.e. the
  * actors belong to a pool of actors, and to the client there is no guarantee about which actor instance actually processes a given message.
diff --git a/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/serialization/Serializer.scala b/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/serialization/Serializer.scala
index cf6e56bba6..a09190f5fc 100644
--- a/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/serialization/Serializer.scala
+++ b/akka-actor/src/main/scala/akka/serialization/Serializer.scala
@@ -120,6 +120,15 @@ abstract class SerializerWithStringManifest extends Serializer {
   /**
    * Produces an object from an array of bytes, with an optional type-hint;
    * the class should be loaded using ActorSystem.dynamicAccess.
+   *
+   * It's recommended to throw `java.io.NotSerializableException` in `fromBinary`
+   * if the manifest is unknown. This makes it possible to introduce new message
+   * types and send them to nodes that don't know about them. This is typically
+   * needed when performing rolling upgrades, i.e. running a cluster with mixed
+   * versions for while. `NotSerializableException` is treated as a transient
+   * problem in the TCP based remoting layer. The problem will be logged
+   * and message is dropped. Other exceptions will tear down the TCP connection
+   * because it can be an indication of corrupt bytes from the underlying transport.
    */
   def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-metrics/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/metrics/protobuf/MessageSerializer.scala b/akka-cluster-metrics/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/metrics/protobuf/MessageSerializer.scala
index 2a48613dc0..2057b006c2 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-metrics/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/metrics/protobuf/MessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-metrics/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/metrics/protobuf/MessageSerializer.scala
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ import akka.protobuf.{ ByteString, MessageLite }
 import scala.annotation.tailrec
 import scala.collection.JavaConverters.{ asJavaIterableConverter, asScalaBufferConverter, setAsJavaSetConverter }
 import akka.serialization.SerializerWithStringManifest
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * Protobuf serializer for [[akka.cluster.metrics.ClusterMetricsMessage]] types.
@@ -66,7 +67,7 @@ class MessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends SerializerWithS
 
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef = manifest match {
     case MetricsGossipEnvelopeManifest ⇒ metricsGossipEnvelopeFromBinary(bytes)
-    case _ ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+    case _ ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
       s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}")
   }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/protobuf/ClusterShardingMessageSerializer.scala b/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/protobuf/ClusterShardingMessageSerializer.scala
index 3e629ee2d9..da8d5df02d 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/protobuf/ClusterShardingMessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/protobuf/ClusterShardingMessageSerializer.scala
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ import akka.serialization.Serialization
 import akka.serialization.SerializationExtension
 import akka.serialization.SerializerWithStringManifest
 import akka.protobuf.MessageLite
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * INTERNAL API: Protobuf serializer of ClusterSharding messages.
@@ -159,7 +160,7 @@ private[akka] class ClusterShardingMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSy
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef =
     fromBinaryMap.get(manifest) match {
       case Some(f) ⇒ f(bytes)
-      case None ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+      case None ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
         s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}]")
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/client/protobuf/ClusterClientMessageSerializer.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/client/protobuf/ClusterClientMessageSerializer.scala
index 1a2f2bb5ab..cebb37ab36 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/client/protobuf/ClusterClientMessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/client/protobuf/ClusterClientMessageSerializer.scala
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import akka.serialization.SerializationExtension
 import akka.serialization.SerializerWithStringManifest
 import akka.cluster.client.ClusterReceptionist
 import akka.cluster.client.protobuf.msg.{ ClusterClientMessages ⇒ cm }
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * INTERNAL API: Serializer of ClusterClient messages.
@@ -54,7 +55,7 @@ private[akka] class ClusterClientMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSyst
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef =
     fromBinaryMap.get(manifest) match {
       case Some(f) ⇒ f(bytes)
-      case None ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+      case None ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
         s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}]")
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/pubsub/protobuf/DistributedPubSubMessageSerializer.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/pubsub/protobuf/DistributedPubSubMessageSerializer.scala
index ef03acf261..29eb8bbac9 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/pubsub/protobuf/DistributedPubSubMessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/pubsub/protobuf/DistributedPubSubMessageSerializer.scala
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ import akka.actor.ActorRef
 import akka.serialization.SerializationExtension
 import scala.collection.immutable.TreeMap
 import akka.serialization.SerializerWithStringManifest
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * INTERNAL API: Protobuf serializer of DistributedPubSubMediator messages.
@@ -72,7 +73,7 @@ private[akka] class DistributedPubSubMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActor
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef =
     fromBinaryMap.get(manifest) match {
       case Some(f) ⇒ f(bytes)
-      case None ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+      case None ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
         s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}]")
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/protobuf/ClusterSingletonMessageSerializer.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/protobuf/ClusterSingletonMessageSerializer.scala
index 00e1233b75..df74a7d580 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/protobuf/ClusterSingletonMessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/protobuf/ClusterSingletonMessageSerializer.scala
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManager.Internal.TakeOverFromMe
 import akka.serialization.BaseSerializer
 import akka.serialization.SerializationExtension
 import akka.serialization.SerializerWithStringManifest
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * INTERNAL API: Serializer of ClusterSingleton messages.
@@ -56,7 +57,7 @@ private[akka] class ClusterSingletonMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorS
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef =
     fromBinaryMap.get(manifest) match {
       case Some(f) ⇒ f(bytes)
-      case None ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+      case None ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
         s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}]")
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/protobuf/ClusterMessageSerializer.scala b/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/protobuf/ClusterMessageSerializer.scala
index 970c8e1a6e..4c9ded529c 100644
--- a/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/protobuf/ClusterMessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/protobuf/ClusterMessageSerializer.scala
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ import scala.annotation.tailrec
 import scala.collection.JavaConverters._
 import scala.collection.immutable
 import scala.concurrent.duration.Deadline
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * Protobuf serializer of cluster messages.
@@ -107,7 +108,7 @@ class ClusterMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends BaseSeri
   def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], clazz: Option[Class[_]]): AnyRef = clazz match {
     case Some(c) ⇒ fromBinaryMap.get(c.asInstanceOf[Class[ClusterMessage]]) match {
       case Some(f) ⇒ f(bytes)
-      case None    ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(s"Unimplemented deserialization of message class $c in ClusterSerializer")
+      case None    ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(s"Unimplemented deserialization of message class $c in ClusterSerializer")
     }
     case _ ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException("Need a cluster message class to be able to deserialize bytes in ClusterSerializer")
   }
@@ -175,8 +176,7 @@ class ClusterMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends BaseSeri
       } else {
         // old remote node
         uniqueAddress.getUid.toLong
-      }
-    )
+      })
   }
 
   private val memberStatusToInt = scala.collection.immutable.HashMap[MemberStatus, Int](
diff --git a/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatedDataSerializer.scala b/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatedDataSerializer.scala
index eaf2b61692..bc8d52ccdc 100644
--- a/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatedDataSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatedDataSerializer.scala
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ import akka.protobuf.ByteString
 import akka.util.ByteString.UTF_8
 import scala.collection.immutable.TreeMap
 import akka.cluster.UniqueAddress
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * Protobuf serializer of ReplicatedData.
@@ -126,7 +127,7 @@ class ReplicatedDataSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem)
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef =
     fromBinaryMap.get(manifest) match {
       case Some(f) ⇒ f(bytes)
-      case None ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+      case None ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
         s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}]")
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatorMessageSerializer.scala b/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatorMessageSerializer.scala
index 356725d706..a231d83a78 100644
--- a/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatorMessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-distributed-data/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ddata/protobuf/ReplicatorMessageSerializer.scala
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ import scala.annotation.tailrec
 import scala.concurrent.duration.FiniteDuration
 import akka.cluster.ddata.DurableStore.DurableDataEnvelope
 import akka.cluster.ddata.DurableStore.DurableDataEnvelope
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * INTERNAL API
@@ -235,7 +236,7 @@ class ReplicatorMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem)
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef =
     fromBinaryMap.get(manifest) match {
       case Some(f) ⇒ f(bytes)
-      case None ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+      case None ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
         s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}]")
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-docs/rst/java/serialization.rst b/akka-docs/rst/java/serialization.rst
index d76de2b513..800000c517 100644
--- a/akka-docs/rst/java/serialization.rst
+++ b/akka-docs/rst/java/serialization.rst
@@ -145,6 +145,16 @@ This is how a ``SerializerWithStringManifest`` looks like:
 You must also bind it to a name in your :ref:`configuration` and then list which classes
 that should be serialized using it.
 
+It's recommended to throw ``java.io.NotSerializableException`` in ``fromBinary``
+if the manifest is unknown. This makes it possible to introduce new message types and
+send them to nodes that don't know about them. This is typically needed when performing 
+rolling upgrades, i.e. running a cluster with mixed versions for while.
+``NotSerializableException`` is treated as a transient problem in the TCP based remoting 
+layer. The problem will be logged and message is dropped. Other exceptions will tear down
+the TCP connection because it can be an indication of corrupt bytes from the underlying 
+transport.
+
+
 Serializing ActorRefs
 ---------------------
 
diff --git a/akka-docs/rst/scala/serialization.rst b/akka-docs/rst/scala/serialization.rst
index b9b518008d..de882d57f1 100644
--- a/akka-docs/rst/scala/serialization.rst
+++ b/akka-docs/rst/scala/serialization.rst
@@ -135,6 +135,15 @@ This is how a ``SerializerWithStringManifest`` looks like:
 You must also bind it to a name in your :ref:`configuration` and then list which classes
 that should be serialized using it.
 
+It's recommended to throw ``java.io.NotSerializableException`` in ``fromBinary``
+if the manifest is unknown. This makes it possible to introduce new message types and
+send them to nodes that don't know about them. This is typically needed when performing 
+rolling upgrades, i.e. running a cluster with mixed versions for while.
+``NotSerializableException`` is treated as a transient problem in the TCP based remoting 
+layer. The problem will be logged and message is dropped. Other exceptions will tear down
+the TCP connection because it can be an indication of corrupt bytes from the underlying 
+transport.
+
 Serializing ActorRefs
 ---------------------
 
diff --git a/akka-persistence/src/main/scala/akka/persistence/serialization/MessageSerializer.scala b/akka-persistence/src/main/scala/akka/persistence/serialization/MessageSerializer.scala
index ba438f7d74..20112282f4 100644
--- a/akka-persistence/src/main/scala/akka/persistence/serialization/MessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-persistence/src/main/scala/akka/persistence/serialization/MessageSerializer.scala
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ import scala.concurrent.duration
 import akka.actor.Actor
 import scala.concurrent.duration.Duration
 import scala.language.existentials
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 /**
  * Marker trait for all protobuf-serializable messages in `akka.persistence`.
@@ -71,7 +72,7 @@ class MessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends BaseSerializer
       case AtLeastOnceDeliverySnapshotClass ⇒ atLeastOnceDeliverySnapshot(mf.AtLeastOnceDeliverySnapshot.parseFrom(bytes))
       case PersistentStateChangeEventClass  ⇒ stateChange(mf.PersistentStateChangeEvent.parseFrom(bytes))
       case PersistentFSMSnapshotClass       ⇒ persistentFSMSnapshot(mf.PersistentFSMSnapshot.parseFrom(bytes))
-      case _                                ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(s"Can't deserialize object of type ${c}")
+      case _                                ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(s"Can't deserialize object of type ${c}")
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/Endpoint.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/Endpoint.scala
index 5ed21c8b94..020dc422fd 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/Endpoint.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/Endpoint.scala
@@ -984,7 +984,18 @@ private[remote] class EndpointReader(
           if (msg.reliableDeliveryEnabled) {
             ackedReceiveBuffer = ackedReceiveBuffer.receive(msg)
             deliverAndAck()
-          } else msgDispatch.dispatch(msg.recipient, msg.recipientAddress, msg.serializedMessage, msg.senderOption)
+          } else try
+            msgDispatch.dispatch(msg.recipient, msg.recipientAddress, msg.serializedMessage, msg.senderOption)
+          catch {
+            case e: NotSerializableException ⇒
+              val sm = msg.serializedMessage
+              log.warning(
+                "Serializer not defined for message with serializer id [{}] and manifest [{}]. " +
+                  "Transient association error (association remains live). {}",
+                sm.getSerializerId,
+                if (sm.hasMessageManifest) sm.getMessageManifest.toStringUtf8 else "",
+                e.getMessage)
+          }
 
         case None ⇒
       }
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializer.scala b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializer.scala
index 9b2fcdf131..6db28fe7ad 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializer.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/main/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializer.scala
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import akka.protobuf.ByteString
 import akka.remote.{ ContainerFormats, RemoteWatcher }
 import akka.serialization.{ BaseSerializer, Serialization, SerializationExtension, SerializerWithStringManifest }
 import java.util.Optional
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 class MiscMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends SerializerWithStringManifest with BaseSerializer {
 
@@ -152,7 +153,7 @@ class MiscMessageSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends SerializerW
   override def fromBinary(bytes: Array[Byte], manifest: String): AnyRef =
     fromBinaryMap.get(manifest) match {
       case Some(deserializer) ⇒ deserializer(bytes)
-      case None ⇒ throw new IllegalArgumentException(
+      case None ⇒ throw new NotSerializableException(
         s"Unimplemented deserialization of message with manifest [$manifest] in [${getClass.getName}]")
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializerSpec.scala b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializerSpec.scala
index 24b4f7a6c7..5d8a56b840 100644
--- a/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializerSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-remote/src/test/scala/akka/remote/serialization/MiscMessageSerializerSpec.scala
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import com.typesafe.config.ConfigFactory
 
 import scala.util.control.NoStackTrace
 import java.util.Optional
+import java.io.NotSerializableException
 
 object MiscMessageSerializerSpec {
   val serializationTestOverrides =
@@ -103,7 +104,7 @@ class MiscMessageSerializerSpec extends AkkaSpec(MiscMessageSerializerSpec.testC
     }
 
     "reject deserialization with invalid manifest" in {
-      intercept[IllegalArgumentException] {
+      intercept[NotSerializableException] {
         val serializer = new MiscMessageSerializer(system.asInstanceOf[ExtendedActorSystem])
         serializer.fromBinary(Array.empty[Byte], "INVALID")
       }