diff --git a/cros/daemon_chromeos.cc b/cros/daemon_chromeos.cc
index 5fa24ea..366fb9a 100644
--- a/cros/daemon_chromeos.cc
+++ b/cros/daemon_chromeos.cc
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@
   // TODO(deymo): Move the initialization to a factory method avoiding the
   // explicit re-usage of the |bus| instance, shared between D-Bus service and
   // D-Bus client calls.
-  RealSystemState::CreateInstance();
+  RealSystemState::SetInstance(&system_state_);
 
   // Create the DBus service.
   dbus_adaptor_.reset(new UpdateEngineAdaptor());
diff --git a/cros/daemon_chromeos.h b/cros/daemon_chromeos.h
index ab9d4b2..b23c2a6 100644
--- a/cros/daemon_chromeos.h
+++ b/cros/daemon_chromeos.h
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@
 #include "update_engine/common/daemon_state_interface.h"
 #include "update_engine/common/subprocess.h"
 #include "update_engine/cros/dbus_service.h"
+#include "update_engine/cros/real_system_state.h"
 
 namespace chromeos_update_engine {
 
@@ -39,6 +40,13 @@
   // initialization.
   void OnDBusRegistered(bool succeeded);
 
+  // |SystemState| is a global context, but we can't have a static singleton of
+  // its object because the style guide does not allow that (it has non-trivial
+  // dtor). We need an instance of |SystemState| in this class instead and have
+  // a global pointer to it. This is better to be defined as the first variable
+  // of this class so it is initialized first and destructed last.
+  RealSystemState system_state_;
+
   // Main D-Bus service adaptor.
   std::unique_ptr<UpdateEngineAdaptor> dbus_adaptor_;
 
diff --git a/cros/fake_system_state.h b/cros/fake_system_state.h
index 7eb830c..da36306 100644
--- a/cros/fake_system_state.h
+++ b/cros/fake_system_state.h
@@ -17,6 +17,8 @@
 #ifndef UPDATE_ENGINE_CROS_FAKE_SYSTEM_STATE_H_
 #define UPDATE_ENGINE_CROS_FAKE_SYSTEM_STATE_H_
 
+#include <memory>
+
 #include <base/logging.h>
 #include <gmock/gmock.h>
 #include <policy/mock_device_policy.h>
@@ -43,10 +45,14 @@
 // OOBE is completed even when there's no such marker file, etc.
 class FakeSystemState : public SystemState {
  public:
-  static void CreateInstance() { g_instance_.reset(new FakeSystemState()); }
+  static void CreateInstance() {
+    static std::unique_ptr<FakeSystemState> system_state;
+    system_state.reset(new FakeSystemState());
+    g_pointer_ = system_state.get();
+  }
 
   static FakeSystemState* Get() {
-    return reinterpret_cast<FakeSystemState*>(g_instance_.get());
+    return reinterpret_cast<FakeSystemState*>(g_pointer_);
   }
 
   // Base class overrides. All getters return the current implementation of
diff --git a/cros/real_system_state.h b/cros/real_system_state.h
index 348c31b..81a5e0e 100644
--- a/cros/real_system_state.h
+++ b/cros/real_system_state.h
@@ -47,13 +47,16 @@
 // used by the actual product code.
 class RealSystemState : public SystemState {
  public:
+  // Constructs all system objects that do not require separate initialization;
+  // see Initialize() below for the remaining ones.
+  RealSystemState() = default;
   ~RealSystemState() = default;
 
-  static void CreateInstance() {
-    CHECK(!g_instance_) << "SystemState has been previously created.";
-    RealSystemState* rss = new RealSystemState();
-    g_instance_.reset(rss);
-    LOG_IF(FATAL, !rss->Initialize()) << "Failed to initialize system state.";
+  static void SetInstance(RealSystemState* system_state) {
+    CHECK(g_pointer_ == nullptr) << "SystemState has been previously set.";
+    g_pointer_ = system_state;
+    LOG_IF(FATAL, !system_state->Initialize())
+        << "Failed to initialize system state.";
   }
 
   // SystemState overrides.
@@ -108,10 +111,6 @@
   DlcServiceInterface* dlcservice() override { return dlcservice_.get(); }
 
  private:
-  // Constructs all system objects that do not require separate initialization;
-  // see Initialize() below for the remaining ones.
-  RealSystemState() = default;
-
   // Initializes and sets systems objects that require an initialization
   // separately from construction. Returns |true| on success.
   bool Initialize();