diff --git a/lib/instance.js b/lib/instance.js
index f4f482ad..a3ce1887 100644
--- a/lib/instance.js
+++ b/lib/instance.js
@@ -166,9 +166,7 @@ function setInstance(host, callback) {
 function addInstance(host, alias) {
     // get the persisted list of instances
     var instances = getConfiguredInstances();
-    if ( !Array.isArray(instances) ) {
-        instances = [];
-    }
+
     // search for a duplicate (by host only)
     var instanceDuplicates = instances.filter(function(i) {
         return ( i.host === host );