diff --git a/admin/report/unittest/ex_reporter.php b/admin/report/unittest/ex_reporter.php
index 9ea83b1cd9b..39a6297d449 100644
--- a/admin/report/unittest/ex_reporter.php
+++ b/admin/report/unittest/ex_reporter.php
@@ -68,6 +68,15 @@ class ExHtmlReporter extends HtmlReporter {
         $this->_paintPassFail('fail', $message);
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Called when a skip needs to be output.
+     */
+    function paintSkip($message) {
+        // Explicitly call grandparent, not parent::paintFail.
+        SimpleScorer::paintSkip($message);
+        $this->_paintPassFail('skip', $message);
+    }
+
     /**
      * Called when an error (uncaught exception or PHP error) needs to be output.
      */
@@ -78,7 +87,7 @@ class ExHtmlReporter extends HtmlReporter {
     }
 
     /**
-     * Private method. Used by printPass/Fail/Error.
+     * Private method. Used by printPass/Fail/Skip/Error.
      */
     function _paintPassFail($passorfail, $message, $rawmessage=false) {
         global $FULLME, $CFG, $OUTPUT;
diff --git a/lang/en_utf8/simpletest.php b/lang/en_utf8/simpletest.php
index 47bf704e2d1..1629a7d08db 100644
--- a/lang/en_utf8/simpletest.php
+++ b/lang/en_utf8/simpletest.php
@@ -40,6 +40,7 @@ $string['runtests'] = 'Run tests';
 $string['rununittests'] = 'Run the unit tests';
 $string['showpasses'] = 'Show passes as well as fails.';
 $string['showsearch'] = 'Show the search for test files.';
+$string['skip'] = 'Skip';
 $string['stacktrace'] = 'Stack trace:';
 $string['summary'] = '{$a->run}/{$a->total} test cases complete: <strong>{$a->passes}</strong> passes, <strong>{$a->fails}</strong> fails and <strong>{$a->exceptions}</strong> exceptions.';
 $string['tablesnotsetup'] = 'Unit test tables are not yet built. Do you want to build them now?.';
diff --git a/lib/simpletestlib/test_case.php b/lib/simpletestlib/test_case.php
index 350168c3c84..c812e7fd54d 100644
--- a/lib/simpletestlib/test_case.php
+++ b/lib/simpletestlib/test_case.php
@@ -604,6 +604,7 @@ class TestSuite {
                 }
                 if (is_subclass_of($class, 'UnitTestCaseUsingDatabase') && empty($CFG->unittestprefix)) {
                     // Do not execute this test because $CFG->unittestprefix is not set, but it will be required.
+                    $reporter->paintSkip("Unit test \"{$class}\" of type UnitTestCaseUsingDatabase skipped. Must define different, non-conflicting \$CFG->unittestprefix to be runnable.");
                     continue;
                 }
                 if ($currenttl = @ini_get('max_execution_time')) {