diff --git a/headers/os/kernel/debugger.h b/headers/os/kernel/debugger.h
index eb51a2531b..32978857f3 100644
--- a/headers/os/kernel/debugger.h
+++ b/headers/os/kernel/debugger.h
@@ -180,6 +180,18 @@ typedef enum {
 } debug_debugger_message;
 
 
+// profile events -- when the buffer is in variable stack depth format, a sample
+// count entry >= B_DEBUG_PROFILE_EVENT_BASE indicates a profile event
+enum {
+	B_DEBUG_PROFILE_EVENT_BASE				= 0x80000000,
+	B_DEBUG_PROFILE_EVENT_PARAMETER_MASK	= 0x0000ffff,
+		// & with to get the event's parameter count
+
+	B_DEBUG_PROFILE_IMAGE_EVENT				= 0x80010001
+		// single parameter: the respective image event counter
+};
+
+
 // #pragma mark -
 // #pragma mark ----- messages to the debug nub thread -----
 
diff --git a/headers/private/kernel/user_debugger.h b/headers/private/kernel/user_debugger.h
index 7b1c997c04..8d1e9d5108 100644
--- a/headers/private/kernel/user_debugger.h
+++ b/headers/private/kernel/user_debugger.h
@@ -96,6 +96,9 @@ struct thread_debug_info {
 		int32			image_event;
 			// number of the image event when the first sample was written into
 			// the buffer
+		int32			last_image_event;
+			// number of the image event when the last sample was written into
+			// the buffer
 		bool			variable_stack_depth;
 			// record a variable number of samples per hit
 		bool			buffer_full;
diff --git a/src/bin/debug/profile.cpp b/src/bin/debug/profile.cpp
index 6666220226..4f8b300b2a 100644
--- a/src/bin/debug/profile.cpp
+++ b/src/bin/debug/profile.cpp
@@ -495,8 +495,26 @@ public:
 			int32 totalSampleCount = 0;
 			int32 tickCount = 0;
 			addr_t* samples = fSamples;
+
 			while (count > 0) {
-				int32 sampleCount = *(samples++);
+				addr_t sampleCount = *(samples++);
+
+				if (sampleCount >= B_DEBUG_PROFILE_EVENT_BASE) {
+					int32 eventParameterCount
+						= sampleCount & B_DEBUG_PROFILE_EVENT_PARAMETER_MASK;
+					if (sampleCount == B_DEBUG_PROFILE_IMAGE_EVENT) {
+						int32 imageEvent = (int32)samples[0];
+						_RemoveObsoleteImages(imageEvent);
+						_AddNewImages(newImages, imageEvent);
+					} else {
+						fprintf(stderr, "unknown profile event: %#lx\n",
+							sampleCount);
+					}
+
+					samples += eventParameterCount;
+					count -= eventParameterCount + 1;
+					continue;
+				}
 
 				// Sort the samples. This way hits of the same symbol are
 				// successive and we can avoid incrementing the hit count of the
@@ -507,7 +525,7 @@ public:
 				ThreadImage* previousImage = NULL;
 				int32 previousSymbol = -1;
 
-				for (int32 i = 0; i < sampleCount; i++) {
+				for (uint32 i = 0; i < sampleCount; i++) {
 					addr_t address = samples[i];
 					ThreadImage* image = FindImage(address);
 					int32 symbol = -1;
@@ -527,7 +545,7 @@ public:
 					previousSymbol = symbol;
 				}
 
-				if (unknownSamples == sampleCount)
+				if (unknownSamples == (int32)sampleCount)
 					fUnkownTicks++;
 
 				samples += sampleCount;
@@ -681,8 +699,21 @@ public:
 	}
 
 private:
+	typedef DoublyLinkedList<ThreadImage>	ImageList;
+
 	void _SynchronizeImages();
 
+	void _AddNewImages(ImageList& newImages, int32 event)
+	{
+		ImageList::Iterator it = newImages.GetIterator();
+		while (ThreadImage* image = it.Next()) {
+			if (image->GetImage()->CreationEvent() >= event) {
+				it.Remove();
+				fImages.Add(image);
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
 	void _RemoveObsoleteImages(int32 event)
 	{
 		// remove obsolete images
@@ -711,8 +742,6 @@ private:
 	}
 
 private:
-	typedef DoublyLinkedList<ThreadImage>	ImageList;
-
 	thread_info	fInfo;
 	::Team*		fTeam;
 	area_id		fSampleArea;
diff --git a/src/system/kernel/debug/user_debugger.cpp b/src/system/kernel/debug/user_debugger.cpp
index bd1bc665dd..483db22b26 100644
--- a/src/system/kernel/debug/user_debugger.cpp
+++ b/src/system/kernel/debug/user_debugger.cpp
@@ -1192,11 +1192,25 @@ profiling_do_sample(bool& flushBuffer)
 
 	// Check, whether the buffer is full or an image event occurred since the
 	// last sample was taken.
+	int32 maxSamples = debugInfo.profile.max_samples;
 	int32 sampleCount = debugInfo.profile.sample_count;
 	int32 stackDepth = debugInfo.profile.stack_depth;
 	int32 imageEvent = thread->team->debug_info.image_event;
 	if (debugInfo.profile.sample_count > 0) {
-		if (debugInfo.profile.image_event < imageEvent
+		if (debugInfo.profile.last_image_event < imageEvent
+			&& debugInfo.profile.variable_stack_depth
+			&& sampleCount + 2 <= maxSamples) {
+			// an image event occurred, but we use variable stack depth and
+			// have enough room in the buffer to indicate an image event
+			addr_t* event = debugInfo.profile.samples + sampleCount;
+			event[0] = B_DEBUG_PROFILE_IMAGE_EVENT;
+			event[1] = imageEvent;
+			sampleCount += 2;
+			debugInfo.profile.sample_count = sampleCount;
+			debugInfo.profile.last_image_event = imageEvent;
+		}
+
+		if (debugInfo.profile.last_image_event < imageEvent
 			|| debugInfo.profile.flush_threshold - sampleCount < stackDepth) {
 			if (!IS_KERNEL_ADDRESS(arch_debug_get_interrupt_pc())) {
 				flushBuffer = true;
@@ -1206,7 +1220,7 @@ profiling_do_sample(bool& flushBuffer)
 			// We can't flush the buffer now, since we interrupted a kernel
 			// function. If the buffer is not full yet, we add the samples,
 			// otherwise we have to drop them.
-			if (debugInfo.profile.max_samples - sampleCount < stackDepth) {
+			if (maxSamples - sampleCount < stackDepth) {
 				debugInfo.profile.dropped_ticks++;
 				return true;
 			}
@@ -1214,6 +1228,7 @@ profiling_do_sample(bool& flushBuffer)
 	} else {
 		// first sample -- set the image event
 		debugInfo.profile.image_event = imageEvent;
+		debugInfo.profile.last_image_event = imageEvent;
 	}
 
 	// get the samples
@@ -2300,6 +2315,8 @@ debug_nub_thread(void *)
 							threadDebugInfo.profile.interval_left = interval;
 							threadDebugInfo.profile.installed_timer = NULL;
 							threadDebugInfo.profile.image_event = imageEvent;
+							threadDebugInfo.profile.last_image_event
+								= imageEvent;
 						} else
 							result = B_BAD_VALUE;
 					} else