diff --git a/src/sql/parts/notebook/models/notebookModel.ts b/src/sql/parts/notebook/models/notebookModel.ts
index d9dd868cd1..d4a5df5bed 100644
--- a/src/sql/parts/notebook/models/notebookModel.ts
+++ b/src/sql/parts/notebook/models/notebookModel.ts
@@ -427,6 +427,11 @@ export class NotebookModel extends Disposable implements INotebookModel {
 
 	public doChangeKernel(kernelSpec: nb.IKernelSpec): Promise<void> {
 		this.setProviderIdForKernel(kernelSpec);
+		// Ensure that the kernel we try to switch to is a valid kernel; if not, use the default
+		let kernelSpecs = this.getKernelSpecs();
+		if (kernelSpecs && kernelSpecs.length > 0 && kernelSpecs.findIndex(k => k.name === kernelSpec.name) < 0) {
+				kernelSpec = kernelSpecs.find(spec => spec.name === this.notebookManager.sessionManager.specs.defaultKernel);
+		}
 		if (this._activeClientSession && this._activeClientSession.isReady) {
 			return this._activeClientSession.changeKernel(kernelSpec)
 				.then((kernel) => {
@@ -673,13 +678,23 @@ export class NotebookModel extends Disposable implements INotebookModel {
 			// If no SessionManager exists, utilize passed in StandardKernels to see if we can intelligently set _providerId
 			if (!sessionManagerFound) {
 				let provider = this._kernelDisplayNameToNotebookProviderIds.get(kernelSpec.display_name);
-				if (provider) {
+				if (provider && provider !== this._providerId) {
 					this._providerId = provider;
 					this._onProviderIdChanged.fire(this._providerId);
 				}
 			}
 		}
 	}
+
+	// Get kernel specs from current sessionManager
+	private getKernelSpecs(): nb.IKernelSpec[] {
+		if (this.notebookManager && this.notebookManager.sessionManager && this.notebookManager.sessionManager.specs &&
+			this.notebookManager.sessionManager.specs.kernels) {
+				return this.notebookManager.sessionManager.specs.kernels;
+			}
+		return [];
+	}
+
 	/**
 	 * Serialize the model to JSON.
 	 */