@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
 
 import {Type} from '@angular/core';
 import {Observable} from 'rxjs/Observable';
-
+import {PRIMARY_OUTLET} from './shared';
 
 /**
  * @whatItDoes Represents router configuration.
@@ -320,6 +320,10 @@ function validateNode(route: Route): void {
   if (Array.isArray(route)) {
     throw new Error(`Invalid route configuration: Array cannot be specified`);
   }
+  if (route.component === undefined && (route.outlet && route.outlet !== PRIMARY_OUTLET)) {
+    throw new Error(
+        `Invalid route configuration of route '${route.path}': a componentless route cannot have a named outlet set`);
+  }
   if (!!route.redirectTo && !!route.children) {
     throw new Error(
         `Invalid configuration of route '${route.path}': redirectTo and children cannot be used together`);
 
@@ -12,8 +12,6 @@ import {RouterOutletMap} from '../router_outlet_map';
 import {ActivatedRoute} from '../router_state';
 import {PRIMARY_OUTLET} from '../shared';
 
-
-
 /**
  * @whatItDoes Acts as a placeholder that Angular dynamically fills based on the current router
  * state.
@@ -79,6 +77,10 @@ export class RouterOutlet implements OnDestroy {
       activatedRoute: ActivatedRoute, loadedResolver: ComponentFactoryResolver,
       loadedInjector: Injector, providers: ResolvedReflectiveProvider[],
       outletMap: RouterOutletMap): void {
+    if (this.isActivated) {
+      throw new Error('Cannot activate an already activated outlet');
+    }
+
     this.outletMap = outletMap;
     this._activatedRoute = activatedRoute;
 
 
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
  */
 
 import {validateConfig} from '../src/config';
+import {PRIMARY_OUTLET} from '../src/shared';
 
 describe('config', () => {
   describe('validateConfig', () => {
@@ -80,6 +81,16 @@ describe('config', () => {
           .toThrowError(
               /Invalid configuration of route 'a': pathMatch can only be set to 'prefix' or 'full'/);
     });
+
+    it('should throw when pathPatch is invalid', () => {
+      expect(() => { validateConfig([{path: 'a', outlet: 'aux', children: []}]); })
+          .toThrowError(
+              /Invalid route configuration of route 'a': a componentless route cannot have a named outlet set/);
+
+      expect(() => validateConfig([{path: 'a', outlet: '', children: []}])).not.toThrow();
+      expect(() => validateConfig([{path: 'a', outlet: PRIMARY_OUTLET, children: []}]))
+          .not.toThrow();
+    });
   });
 });