diff --git a/orte/include/orte_types.h b/orte/include/orte_types.h
index b107e6fe25..e98432afd4 100644
--- a/orte/include/orte_types.h
+++ b/orte/include/orte_types.h
@@ -18,6 +18,12 @@
 #ifndef ORTE_TYPES_H
 #define ORTE_TYPES_H
 
+#include "orte_config.h"
+
+#ifdef HAVE_SYS_TYPES_H
+#include <sys/types.h>
+#endif
+
 /**
  * Supported datatypes for messaging and storage operations.
  *