diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/operations/repair_shards.c b/src/backend/distributed/operations/repair_shards.c
index 59e87f74a..c3dfa791e 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/operations/repair_shards.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/operations/repair_shards.c
@@ -1063,12 +1063,29 @@ EnsureShardCanBeCopied(int64 shardId, const char *sourceNodeName, int32 sourceNo
 	{
 		if (targetPlacement->shardState == SHARD_STATE_TO_DELETE)
 		{
-			ereport(ERROR, (errcode(ERRCODE_INVALID_PARAMETER_VALUE),
-							errmsg(
-								"shard " INT64_FORMAT " already exists in the target node",
-								shardId),
-							errdetail(
-								"The existing shard is marked for deletion, but could not be deleted because there are still active queries on it")));
+			/*
+			 * Trigger deletion of orphaned shards and hope that this removes
+			 * the shard.
+			 */
+			DropOrphanedShardsInSeparateTransaction();
+			shardPlacementList = ShardPlacementList(shardId);
+			targetPlacement = SearchShardPlacementInList(shardPlacementList,
+														 targetNodeName,
+														 targetNodePort);
+
+			/*
+			 * If it still doesn't remove the shard, then we error.
+			 */
+			if (targetPlacement != NULL)
+			{
+				ereport(ERROR, (errcode(ERRCODE_INVALID_PARAMETER_VALUE),
+								errmsg(
+									"shard " INT64_FORMAT
+									" still exists on the target node as an orphaned shard",
+									shardId),
+								errdetail(
+									"The existing shard is orphaned, but could not be deleted because there are still active queries on it")));
+			}
 		}
 		else
 		{
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_cleaner.c b/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_cleaner.c
index ab7fdfaf9..afa206594 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_cleaner.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_cleaner.c
@@ -12,60 +12,109 @@
 
 #include "postgres.h"
 
+#include "access/xact.h"
+#include "postmaster/postmaster.h"
 
 #include "distributed/coordinator_protocol.h"
 #include "distributed/metadata_cache.h"
 #include "distributed/shard_cleaner.h"
+#include "distributed/shard_rebalancer.h"
+#include "distributed/remote_commands.h"
 #include "distributed/resource_lock.h"
 #include "distributed/worker_transaction.h"
 
 
 /* declarations for dynamic loading */
-PG_FUNCTION_INFO_V1(master_defer_delete_shards);
+PG_FUNCTION_INFO_V1(citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards);
+PG_FUNCTION_INFO_V1(isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards);
 
 static bool TryDropShard(GroupShardPlacement *placement);
 static bool TryLockRelationAndPlacementCleanup(Oid relationId, LOCKMODE lockmode);
 
+
 /*
- * master_defer_delete_shards implements a user-facing UDF to deleter orphaned shards that
- * are still haning around in the system. These shards are orphaned by previous actions
- * that were not directly able to delete the placements eg. shard moving or dropping of a
- * distributed table while one of the data nodes was not online.
+ * citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards implements a user-facing UDF to delete
+ * orphaned shards that are still haning around in the system. These shards are
+ * orphaned by previous actions that were not directly able to delete the
+ * placements eg. shard moving or dropping of a distributed table while one of
+ * the data nodes was not online.
  *
- * This function iterates through placements where shardstate is SHARD_STATE_TO_DELETE
- * (shardstate = 4), drops the corresponding tables from the node and removes the
- * placement information from the catalog.
+ * This function iterates through placements where shardstate is
+ * SHARD_STATE_TO_DELETE (shardstate = 4), drops the corresponding tables from
+ * the node and removes the placement information from the catalog.
  *
- * The function takes no arguments and runs cluster wide
+ * The function takes no arguments and runs cluster wide. It cannot be run in a
+ * transaction, because holding the locks it takes for a long time is not good.
+ * While the locks are held, it is impossible for the background daemon to
+ * cleanup orphaned shards.
  */
 Datum
-master_defer_delete_shards(PG_FUNCTION_ARGS)
+citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards(PG_FUNCTION_ARGS)
+{
+	CheckCitusVersion(ERROR);
+	EnsureCoordinator();
+	PreventInTransactionBlock(true, "citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards");
+
+	bool waitForLocks = true;
+	int droppedShardCount = DropOrphanedShards(waitForLocks);
+	if (droppedShardCount > 0)
+	{
+		ereport(NOTICE, (errmsg("cleaned up %d orphaned shards", droppedShardCount)));
+	}
+
+	PG_RETURN_VOID();
+}
+
+
+/*
+ * isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards implements a test UDF that's the same as
+ * citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards. The only difference is that this command can
+ * be run in transactions, this is to test
+ */
+Datum
+isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards(PG_FUNCTION_ARGS)
 {
 	CheckCitusVersion(ERROR);
 	EnsureCoordinator();
 
 	bool waitForLocks = true;
-	int droppedShardCount = DropMarkedShards(waitForLocks);
+	int droppedShardCount = DropOrphanedShards(waitForLocks);
+	if (droppedShardCount > 0)
+	{
+		ereport(NOTICE, (errmsg("cleaned up %d orphaned shards", droppedShardCount)));
+	}
 
-	PG_RETURN_INT32(droppedShardCount);
+	PG_RETURN_VOID();
 }
 
 
 /*
- * TryDropMarkedShards is a wrapper around DropMarkedShards that catches
+ * DropOrphanedShardsInSeparateTransaction cleans up orphaned shards by
+ * connecting to localhost. This is done, so that the locks that
+ * DropOrphanedShards takes are only held for a short time.
+ */
+void
+DropOrphanedShardsInSeparateTransaction(void)
+{
+	ExecuteCriticalCommandInSeparateTransaction("CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards()");
+}
+
+
+/*
+ * TryDropOrphanedShards is a wrapper around DropOrphanedShards that catches
  * any errors to make it safe to use in the maintenance daemon.
  *
  * If dropping any of the shards failed this function returns -1, otherwise it
  * returns the number of dropped shards.
  */
 int
-TryDropMarkedShards(bool waitForLocks)
+TryDropOrphanedShards(bool waitForLocks)
 {
 	int droppedShardCount = 0;
 	MemoryContext savedContext = CurrentMemoryContext;
 	PG_TRY();
 	{
-		droppedShardCount = DropMarkedShards(waitForLocks);
+		droppedShardCount = DropOrphanedShards(waitForLocks);
 	}
 	PG_CATCH();
 	{
@@ -84,7 +133,7 @@ TryDropMarkedShards(bool waitForLocks)
 
 
 /*
- * DropMarkedShards removes shards that were marked SHARD_STATE_TO_DELETE before.
+ * DropOrphanedShards removes shards that were marked SHARD_STATE_TO_DELETE before.
  *
  * It does so by trying to take an exclusive lock on the shard and its
  * colocated placements before removing. If the lock cannot be obtained it
@@ -103,7 +152,7 @@ TryDropMarkedShards(bool waitForLocks)
  *
  */
 int
-DropMarkedShards(bool waitForLocks)
+DropOrphanedShards(bool waitForLocks)
 {
 	int removedShardCount = 0;
 	ListCell *shardPlacementCell = NULL;
@@ -159,7 +208,7 @@ DropMarkedShards(bool waitForLocks)
 
 	if (failedShardDropCount > 0)
 	{
-		ereport(WARNING, (errmsg("Failed to drop %d old shards out of %d",
+		ereport(WARNING, (errmsg("Failed to drop %d orphaned shards out of %d",
 								 failedShardDropCount, list_length(shardPlacementList))));
 	}
 
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_rebalancer.c b/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_rebalancer.c
index 92f37ec05..0049d1f0e 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_rebalancer.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/operations/shard_rebalancer.c
@@ -43,6 +43,7 @@
 #include "distributed/repair_shards.h"
 #include "distributed/resource_lock.h"
 #include "distributed/shard_rebalancer.h"
+#include "distributed/shard_cleaner.h"
 #include "distributed/tuplestore.h"
 #include "distributed/worker_protocol.h"
 #include "funcapi.h"
@@ -700,6 +701,8 @@ ExecutePlacementUpdates(List *placementUpdateList, Oid shardReplicationModeOid,
 							   "unsupported")));
 	}
 
+	DropOrphanedShardsInSeparateTransaction();
+
 	foreach(placementUpdateCell, placementUpdateList)
 	{
 		PlacementUpdateEvent *placementUpdate = lfirst(placementUpdateCell);
@@ -910,17 +913,15 @@ citus_drain_node(PG_FUNCTION_ARGS)
 	};
 
 	char *nodeName = text_to_cstring(nodeNameText);
-	int connectionFlag = FORCE_NEW_CONNECTION;
-	MultiConnection *connection = GetNodeConnection(connectionFlag, LocalHostName,
-													PostPortNumber);
 
 	/*
 	 * This is done in a separate session. This way it's not undone if the
 	 * draining fails midway through.
 	 */
-	ExecuteCriticalRemoteCommand(connection, psprintf(
-									 "SELECT master_set_node_property(%s, %i, 'shouldhaveshards', false)",
-									 quote_literal_cstr(nodeName), nodePort));
+	ExecuteCriticalCommandInSeparateTransaction(psprintf(
+													"SELECT master_set_node_property(%s, %i, 'shouldhaveshards', false)",
+													quote_literal_cstr(nodeName),
+													nodePort));
 
 	RebalanceTableShards(&options, shardTransferModeOid);
 
@@ -1692,20 +1693,32 @@ UpdateShardPlacement(PlacementUpdateEvent *placementUpdateEvent,
 										  REBALANCE_PROGRESS_MOVING);
 
 	ConflictShardPlacementUpdateOnlyWithIsolationTesting(shardId);
-	int connectionFlag = FORCE_NEW_CONNECTION;
-	MultiConnection *connection = GetNodeConnection(connectionFlag, LocalHostName,
-													PostPortNumber);
 
 	/*
 	 * In case of failure, we throw an error such that rebalance_table_shards
 	 * fails early.
 	 */
-	ExecuteCriticalRemoteCommand(connection, placementUpdateCommand->data);
+	ExecuteCriticalCommandInSeparateTransaction(placementUpdateCommand->data);
 
 	UpdateColocatedShardPlacementProgress(shardId,
 										  sourceNode->workerName,
 										  sourceNode->workerPort,
 										  REBALANCE_PROGRESS_MOVED);
+}
+
+
+/*
+ * ExecuteCriticalCommandInSeparateTransaction runs a command in a separate
+ * transaction that is commited right away. This is useful for things that you
+ * don't want to rollback when the current transaction is rolled back.
+ */
+void
+ExecuteCriticalCommandInSeparateTransaction(char *command)
+{
+	int connectionFlag = FORCE_NEW_CONNECTION;
+	MultiConnection *connection = GetNodeConnection(connectionFlag, LocalHostName,
+													PostPortNumber);
+	ExecuteCriticalRemoteCommand(connection, command);
 	CloseConnection(connection);
 }
 
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c b/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c
index 1f80eb45e..3bc921c55 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/shared_library_init.c
@@ -645,7 +645,9 @@ RegisterCitusConfigVariables(void)
 
 	DefineCustomBoolVariable(
 		"citus.defer_drop_after_shard_move",
-		gettext_noop("When enabled a shard move will mark old shards for deletion"),
+		gettext_noop("When enabled a shard move will mark the original shards "
+					 "for deletion after a successful move, instead of deleting "
+					 "them right away."),
 		gettext_noop("The deletion of a shard can sometimes run into a conflict with a "
 					 "long running transactions on a the shard during the drop phase of "
 					 "the shard move. This causes some moves to be rolled back after "
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/sql/citus--10.0-3--10.1-1.sql b/src/backend/distributed/sql/citus--10.0-3--10.1-1.sql
index 387db171e..ec5a122fa 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/sql/citus--10.0-3--10.1-1.sql
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/sql/citus--10.0-3--10.1-1.sql
@@ -47,3 +47,5 @@ WHERE repmodel = 'c'
 
 DROP TRIGGER pg_dist_rebalance_strategy_enterprise_check_trigger ON pg_catalog.pg_dist_rebalance_strategy;
 DROP FUNCTION citus_internal.pg_dist_rebalance_strategy_enterprise_check();
+
+#include "udfs/citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards/10.1-1.sql"
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/sql/downgrades/citus--10.1-1--10.0-3.sql b/src/backend/distributed/sql/downgrades/citus--10.1-1--10.0-3.sql
index af5c3b55b..5946473f9 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/sql/downgrades/citus--10.1-1--10.0-3.sql
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/sql/downgrades/citus--10.1-1--10.0-3.sql
@@ -84,3 +84,4 @@ CREATE TRIGGER pg_dist_rebalance_strategy_enterprise_check_trigger
   BEFORE INSERT OR UPDATE OR DELETE OR TRUNCATE ON pg_dist_rebalance_strategy
   FOR EACH STATEMENT EXECUTE FUNCTION citus_internal.pg_dist_rebalance_strategy_enterprise_check();
 
+DROP PROCEDURE pg_catalog.citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/sql/udfs/citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards/10.1-1.sql b/src/backend/distributed/sql/udfs/citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards/10.1-1.sql
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ed5723602
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/sql/udfs/citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards/10.1-1.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+CREATE OR REPLACE PROCEDURE pg_catalog.citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
+    LANGUAGE C
+    AS 'citus', $$citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards$$;
+COMMENT ON PROCEDURE pg_catalog.citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
+    IS 'cleanup orphaned shards';
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/sql/udfs/citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards/latest.sql b/src/backend/distributed/sql/udfs/citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards/latest.sql
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ed5723602
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/sql/udfs/citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards/latest.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+CREATE OR REPLACE PROCEDURE pg_catalog.citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
+    LANGUAGE C
+    AS 'citus', $$citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards$$;
+COMMENT ON PROCEDURE pg_catalog.citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
+    IS 'cleanup orphaned shards';
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/test/shard_rebalancer.c b/src/backend/distributed/test/shard_rebalancer.c
index d43ffe446..4cccd851d 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/test/shard_rebalancer.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/test/shard_rebalancer.c
@@ -74,13 +74,13 @@ typedef struct RebalancePlanContext
 } RebalancePlacementContext;
 
 /*
- * run_try_drop_marked_shards is a wrapper to run TryDropMarkedShards.
+ * run_try_drop_marked_shards is a wrapper to run TryDropOrphanedShards.
  */
 Datum
 run_try_drop_marked_shards(PG_FUNCTION_ARGS)
 {
 	bool waitForLocks = false;
-	TryDropMarkedShards(waitForLocks);
+	TryDropOrphanedShards(waitForLocks);
 	PG_RETURN_VOID();
 }
 
diff --git a/src/backend/distributed/utils/maintenanced.c b/src/backend/distributed/utils/maintenanced.c
index 293698180..2295830d6 100644
--- a/src/backend/distributed/utils/maintenanced.c
+++ b/src/backend/distributed/utils/maintenanced.c
@@ -645,7 +645,7 @@ CitusMaintenanceDaemonMain(Datum main_arg)
 				lastShardCleanTime = GetCurrentTimestamp();
 
 				bool waitForLocks = false;
-				numberOfDroppedShards = TryDropMarkedShards(waitForLocks);
+				numberOfDroppedShards = TryDropOrphanedShards(waitForLocks);
 			}
 
 			CommitTransactionCommand();
diff --git a/src/include/distributed/shard_cleaner.h b/src/include/distributed/shard_cleaner.h
index b48d89522..8a98254f9 100644
--- a/src/include/distributed/shard_cleaner.h
+++ b/src/include/distributed/shard_cleaner.h
@@ -17,7 +17,8 @@ extern bool DeferShardDeleteOnMove;
 extern double DesiredPercentFreeAfterMove;
 extern bool CheckAvailableSpaceBeforeMove;
 
-extern int TryDropMarkedShards(bool waitForLocks);
-extern int DropMarkedShards(bool waitForLocks);
+extern int TryDropOrphanedShards(bool waitForLocks);
+extern int DropOrphanedShards(bool waitForLocks);
+extern void DropOrphanedShardsInSeparateTransaction(void);
 
 #endif /*CITUS_SHARD_CLEANER_H */
diff --git a/src/include/distributed/shard_rebalancer.h b/src/include/distributed/shard_rebalancer.h
index 096af4a58..de0684d68 100644
--- a/src/include/distributed/shard_rebalancer.h
+++ b/src/include/distributed/shard_rebalancer.h
@@ -190,6 +190,7 @@ extern List * RebalancePlacementUpdates(List *workerNodeList, List *shardPlaceme
 										RebalancePlanFunctions *rebalancePlanFunctions);
 extern List * ReplicationPlacementUpdates(List *workerNodeList, List *shardPlacementList,
 										  int shardReplicationFactor);
+extern void ExecuteCriticalCommandInSeparateTransaction(char *command);
 
 
 #endif   /* SHARD_REBALANCER_H */
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.out b/src/test/regress/expected/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.out
index a144f48a5..bedfcc6f7 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.out
@@ -61,12 +61,8 @@ SELECT count(*) FROM referencing_table2;
    101
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT 1 FROM public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- ?column?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-        1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 2 orphaned shards
 SELECT * FROM table_fkeys_in_workers WHERE relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' AND refd_relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' ORDER BY 1,2,3;
                   name                   |                             relid                             |                          refd_relid
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -108,12 +104,8 @@ SELECT count(*) FROM referencing_table2;
    101
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT 1 FROM public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- ?column?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-        1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 2 orphaned shards
 SELECT * FROM table_fkeys_in_workers WHERE relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' AND refd_relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' ORDER BY 1,2,3;
                   name                   |                             relid                             |                          refd_relid
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.out b/src/test/regress/expected/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.out
index f11065c1b..199678ca0 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.out
@@ -10,23 +10,19 @@ step s1-move-placement:
 master_move_shard_placement
 
 
+s1: NOTICE:  cleaned up 1 orphaned shards
 step s1-drop-marked-shards:
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    SET client_min_messages to NOTICE;
+    CALL isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
-master_defer_delete_shards
-
-1
 step s2-drop-marked-shards:
     SET client_min_messages to DEBUG1;
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    CALL isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
  <waiting ...>
 step s1-commit: 
     COMMIT;
 
 step s2-drop-marked-shards: <... completed>
-master_defer_delete_shards
-
-0
 
 starting permutation: s1-begin s1-move-placement s2-drop-marked-shards s1-drop-marked-shards s1-commit
 step s1-begin:
@@ -40,17 +36,13 @@ master_move_shard_placement
 
 step s2-drop-marked-shards:
     SET client_min_messages to DEBUG1;
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    CALL isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
-master_defer_delete_shards
-
-0
+s1: NOTICE:  cleaned up 1 orphaned shards
 step s1-drop-marked-shards:
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    SET client_min_messages to NOTICE;
+    CALL isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
-master_defer_delete_shards
-
-1
 step s1-commit:
     COMMIT;
 
@@ -82,14 +74,63 @@ run_commands_on_session_level_connection_to_node
 
 
 step s1-drop-marked-shards:
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    SET client_min_messages to NOTICE;
+    CALL isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
  <waiting ...>
 s1: WARNING:  canceling statement due to lock timeout
-s1: WARNING:  Failed to drop 1 old shards out of 1
 step s1-drop-marked-shards: <... completed>
-master_defer_delete_shards
+s1: WARNING:  Failed to drop 1 orphaned shards out of 1
+step s1-commit:
+    COMMIT;
 
-0
+step s2-stop-connection:
+ SELECT stop_session_level_connection_to_node();
+
+stop_session_level_connection_to_node
+
+
+
+starting permutation: s1-begin s1-move-placement s2-start-session-level-connection s2-lock-table-on-worker s1-commit s1-begin s1-move-placement-back s1-commit s2-stop-connection
+step s1-begin:
+    BEGIN;
+
+step s1-move-placement:
+    SELECT master_move_shard_placement((SELECT * FROM selected_shard), 'localhost', 57637, 'localhost', 57638);
+
+master_move_shard_placement
+
+
+step s2-start-session-level-connection:
+        SELECT start_session_level_connection_to_node('localhost', 57637);
+
+start_session_level_connection_to_node
+
+
+step s2-lock-table-on-worker:
+    SELECT run_commands_on_session_level_connection_to_node('BEGIN;');
+    SELECT run_commands_on_session_level_connection_to_node('LOCK TABLE t1_120000');
+
+run_commands_on_session_level_connection_to_node
+
+
+run_commands_on_session_level_connection_to_node
+
+
+step s1-commit:
+    COMMIT;
+
+step s1-begin:
+    BEGIN;
+
+step s1-move-placement-back:
+    SET client_min_messages to NOTICE;
+    SHOW log_error_verbosity;
+    SELECT master_move_shard_placement((SELECT * FROM selected_shard), 'localhost', 57638, 'localhost', 57637);
+
+log_error_verbosity
+
+verbose
+ERROR:  shard xxxxx still exists on the target node as an orphaned shard
 step s1-commit:
     COMMIT;
 
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/multi_extension.out b/src/test/regress/expected/multi_extension.out
index 63179c7c5..04c15a84e 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/multi_extension.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/multi_extension.out
@@ -573,6 +573,7 @@ SELECT * FROM print_extension_changes();
  function get_rebalance_progress() TABLE(sessionid integer, table_name regclass, shardid bigint, shard_size bigint, sourcename text, sourceport integer, targetname text, targetport integer, progress bigint)                 |
  function get_rebalance_table_shards_plan(regclass,real,integer,bigint[],boolean,name) TABLE(table_name regclass, shardid bigint, shard_size bigint, sourcename text, sourceport integer, targetname text, targetport integer) |
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | function citus_add_rebalance_strategy(name,regproc,regproc,regproc,real,real,real) void
+                                                                                                                                                                                                                               | function citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | function citus_local_disk_space_stats() record
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | function create_distributed_table(regclass,text,citus.distribution_type,text,integer) void
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | function get_rebalance_progress() TABLE(sessionid integer, table_name regclass, shardid bigint, shard_size bigint, sourcename text, sourceport integer, targetname text, targetport integer, progress bigint, source_shard_size bigint, target_shard_size bigint)
@@ -580,7 +581,7 @@ SELECT * FROM print_extension_changes();
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | function worker_partitioned_relation_size(regclass) bigint
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | function worker_partitioned_relation_total_size(regclass) bigint
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | function worker_partitioned_table_size(regclass) bigint
-(14 rows)
+(15 rows)
 
 DROP TABLE prev_objects, extension_diff;
 -- show running version
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/multi_test_helpers_superuser.out b/src/test/regress/expected/multi_test_helpers_superuser.out
index cfc3cf02b..01676131c 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/multi_test_helpers_superuser.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/multi_test_helpers_superuser.out
@@ -1,9 +1,3 @@
-CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION master_defer_delete_shards()
-    RETURNS int
-    LANGUAGE C STRICT
-    AS 'citus', $$master_defer_delete_shards$$;
-COMMENT ON FUNCTION master_defer_delete_shards()
-    IS 'remove orphaned shards';
 CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION wait_until_metadata_sync(timeout INTEGER DEFAULT 15000)
     RETURNS void
     LANGUAGE C STRICT
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/shard_move_deferred_delete.out b/src/test/regress/expected/shard_move_deferred_delete.out
index c125e2c53..ed0d46500 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/shard_move_deferred_delete.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/shard_move_deferred_delete.out
@@ -50,13 +50,14 @@ $cmd$);
  (localhost,57638,t,1)
 (2 rows)
 
+-- Make sure this cannot be run in a transaction
+BEGIN;
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+ERROR:  citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards cannot run inside a transaction block
+COMMIT;
 -- execute delayed removal
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 1 orphaned shards
 -- we expect the shard to be on only the second worker
 SELECT run_command_on_workers($cmd$
     SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relname = 't1_20000000';
@@ -133,10 +134,14 @@ $cmd$);
  (localhost,57638,t,1)
 (2 rows)
 
--- we expect to get an error since the old placement is still there
+-- master_move_shard_placement automatically cleans up orphaned shards if
+-- needed.
 SELECT master_move_shard_placement(20000000, 'localhost', :worker_2_port, 'localhost', :worker_1_port);
-ERROR:  shard xxxxx already exists in the target node
-DETAIL:  The existing shard is marked for deletion, but could not be deleted because there are still active queries on it
+ master_move_shard_placement
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
 SELECT run_command_on_workers($cmd$
     -- override the function for testing purpose
     create or replace function pg_catalog.citus_local_disk_space_stats(OUT available_disk_size bigint, OUT total_disk_size bigint)
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/shard_rebalancer.out b/src/test/regress/expected/shard_rebalancer.out
index 23f100038..33852f037 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/shard_rebalancer.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/shard_rebalancer.out
@@ -31,24 +31,14 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('dist_table_test');
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
  rebalance_table_shards
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- test that calling rebalance_table_shards without specifying relation
 -- wouldn't move shard of the citus local table.
 CREATE TABLE citus_local_table(a int, b int);
@@ -65,12 +55,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- show that citus local table shard is still on the coordinator
 SELECT tablename FROM pg_catalog.pg_tables where tablename like 'citus_local_table_%';
         tablename
@@ -101,12 +86,7 @@ SELECT pg_sleep(.1); -- wait to make sure the config has changed before running
 
 SELECT master_drain_node('localhost', :master_port);
 ERROR:  connection to the remote node foobar:57636 failed with the following error: could not translate host name "foobar" to address: <system specific error>
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.local_hostname;
 SELECT pg_reload_conf();
  pg_reload_conf
@@ -126,12 +106,7 @@ SELECT master_drain_node('localhost', :master_port);
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- show that citus local table shard is still on the coordinator
 SELECT tablename FROM pg_catalog.pg_tables where tablename like 'citus_local_table_%';
         tablename
@@ -181,7 +156,6 @@ SELECT pg_sleep(.1); -- wait to make sure the config has changed before running
 
 SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 2;
 SELECT replicate_table_shards('dist_table_test_2',  max_shard_copies := 4,  shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-NOTICE:  Copying shard xxxxx from localhost:xxxxx to localhost:xxxxx ...
 ERROR:  connection to the remote node foobar:57636 failed with the following error: could not translate host name "foobar" to address: <system specific error>
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.local_hostname;
 SELECT pg_reload_conf();
@@ -579,7 +553,7 @@ AS $$
     pg_dist_shard_placement src USING (shardid),
     (SELECT nodename, nodeport FROM pg_dist_shard_placement ORDER BY nodeport DESC LIMIT 1) dst
     WHERE src.nodeport < dst.nodeport AND s.logicalrelid = rel::regclass;
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 $$;
 CALL create_unbalanced_shards('rebalance_test_table');
 SET citus.shard_replication_factor TO 2;
@@ -624,12 +598,7 @@ FROM (
          WHERE logicalrelid = 'rebalance_test_table'::regclass
      ) T;
 ERROR:  connection to the remote node foobar:57636 failed with the following error: could not translate host name "foobar" to address: <system specific error>
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.local_hostname;
 SELECT pg_reload_conf();
  pg_reload_conf
@@ -658,12 +627,7 @@ FROM (
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |     logicalrelid     | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -715,12 +679,7 @@ SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
     57638 | rebalance_test_table |     5
 (2 rows)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table',
     threshold := 0, max_shard_moves := 1,
     shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
@@ -729,12 +688,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table',
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |     logicalrelid     | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -749,12 +703,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', threshold := 1, shard_tran
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |     logicalrelid     | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -769,12 +718,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', threshold := 0);
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |     logicalrelid     | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -790,12 +734,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', threshold := 0, shard_tran
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |     logicalrelid     | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -969,12 +908,7 @@ SELECT COUNT(*) FROM imbalanced_table;
 -- Try force_logical
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('imbalanced_table', threshold:=0, shard_transfer_mode:='force_logical');
 ERROR:  the force_logical transfer mode is currently unsupported
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- Test rebalance operation
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('imbalanced_table', threshold:=0, shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
  rebalance_table_shards
@@ -982,12 +916,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('imbalanced_table', threshold:=0, shard_transfer_m
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- Confirm rebalance
 -- Shard counts in each node after rebalance
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
@@ -1024,12 +953,7 @@ FROM pg_dist_shard_placement
 WHERE nodeport = :worker_2_port;
 ERROR:  Moving shards to a non-existing node is not supported
 HINT:  Add the target node via SELECT citus_add_node('localhost', 10000);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- Try to move shards to a node where shards are not allowed
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_1_port, 'shouldhaveshards', false);
  master_set_node_property
@@ -1073,12 +997,7 @@ WHERE nodeport = :worker_2_port;
 
 (2 rows)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          2
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT create_distributed_table('colocated_rebalance_test2', 'id');
  create_distributed_table
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1106,12 +1025,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0,
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- Confirm that nothing changed
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |       logicalrelid        | count
@@ -1153,19 +1067,64 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0,
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          4
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- Check that we can call this function without a crash
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_progress();
  sessionid | table_name | shardid | shard_size | sourcename | sourceport | targetname | targetport | progress | source_shard_size | target_shard_size
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
 (0 rows)
 
--- Confirm that the nodes are now there
+-- Confirm that the shards are now there
+SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
+ nodeport |       logicalrelid        | count
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+    57637 | colocated_rebalance_test  |     2
+    57638 | colocated_rebalance_test  |     2
+    57637 | colocated_rebalance_test2 |     2
+    57638 | colocated_rebalance_test2 |     2
+(4 rows)
+
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+select * from pg_dist_placement;
+ placementid | shardid | shardstate | shardlength | groupid
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+         135 |  123023 |          1 |           0 |      14
+         138 |  123024 |          1 |           0 |      14
+         141 |  123027 |          1 |           0 |      14
+         142 |  123028 |          1 |           0 |      14
+         143 |  123021 |          1 |           0 |      16
+         144 |  123025 |          1 |           0 |      16
+         145 |  123022 |          1 |           0 |      16
+         146 |  123026 |          1 |           0 |      16
+(8 rows)
+
+-- Move all shards to worker1 again
+SELECT master_move_shard_placement(shardid, 'localhost', :worker_2_port, 'localhost', :worker_1_port, 'block_writes')
+FROM pg_dist_shard NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_placement NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_node
+WHERE nodeport = :worker_2_port AND logicalrelid = 'colocated_rebalance_test'::regclass;
+ master_move_shard_placement
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+(2 rows)
+
+-- Confirm that the shards are now all on worker1
+SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
+ nodeport |       logicalrelid        | count
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+    57637 | colocated_rebalance_test  |     4
+    57637 | colocated_rebalance_test2 |     4
+(2 rows)
+
+-- Explicitly don't run citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards, rebalance_table_shards
+-- should do that for automatically.
+SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
+ rebalance_table_shards
+---------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+(1 row)
+
+-- Confirm that the shards are now moved
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |       logicalrelid        | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1216,12 +1175,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0,
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          4
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1244,12 +1198,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('non_colocated_rebalance_test', threshold :
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          2
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1271,12 +1220,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0,
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          4
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1293,12 +1237,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('non_colocated_rebalance_test', threshold :
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          2
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1335,12 +1274,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'blo
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          6
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1362,12 +1296,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'blo
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          6
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1404,12 +1333,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'blo
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          6
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1431,12 +1355,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'blo
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          6
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1462,12 +1381,7 @@ SELECT * from master_drain_node('localhost', :worker_2_port, shard_transfer_mode
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          6
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 select shouldhaveshards from pg_dist_node where nodeport = :worker_2_port;
  shouldhaveshards
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1495,12 +1409,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'blo
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          6
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport |         logicalrelid         | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1607,12 +1516,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes')
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport | logicalrelid | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1627,12 +1531,8 @@ NOTICE:  Moving shard xxxxx from localhost:xxxxx to localhost:xxxxx ...
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          1
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 1 orphaned shards
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport | logicalrelid | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1648,12 +1548,7 @@ DETAIL:  Using threshold of 0.01
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport | logicalrelid | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1759,12 +1654,8 @@ NOTICE:  Moving shard xxxxx from localhost:xxxxx to localhost:xxxxx ...
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          4
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 4 orphaned shards
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport | logicalrelid | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1859,12 +1750,8 @@ NOTICE:  Moving shard xxxxx from localhost:xxxxx to localhost:xxxxx ...
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          3
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 3 orphaned shards
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport | logicalrelid | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1888,12 +1775,7 @@ SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes')
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport | logicalrelid | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1943,12 +1825,8 @@ NOTICE:  Moving shard xxxxx from localhost:xxxxx to localhost:xxxxx ...
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          4
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+NOTICE:  cleaned up 4 orphaned shards
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
  nodeport | logicalrelid | count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -1973,20 +1851,10 @@ SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'non_
 ERROR:  could not find rebalance strategy with name non_existing
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'non_existing');
 ERROR:  could not find rebalance strategy with name non_existing
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM master_drain_node('localhost', :worker_2_port, rebalance_strategy := 'non_existing');
 ERROR:  could not find rebalance strategy with name non_existing
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT citus_set_default_rebalance_strategy('non_existing');
 ERROR:  strategy with specified name does not exist
 UPDATE pg_dist_rebalance_strategy SET default_strategy=false;
@@ -1994,20 +1862,10 @@ SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab');
 ERROR:  no rebalance_strategy was provided, but there is also no default strategy set
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab');
 ERROR:  no rebalance_strategy was provided, but there is also no default strategy set
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM master_drain_node('localhost', :worker_2_port);
 ERROR:  no rebalance_strategy was provided, but there is also no default strategy set
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 UPDATE pg_dist_rebalance_strategy SET default_strategy=true WHERE name='by_shard_count';
 CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION shard_cost_no_arguments()
     RETURNS real AS $$ SELECT 1.0::real $$ LANGUAGE sql;
@@ -2283,12 +2141,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', shard_transfer_mode:='bloc
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          3
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT count(*) FROM pg_dist_shard NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_shard_placement WHERE logicalrelid = 'ref_table'::regclass;
  count
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -2350,12 +2203,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          2
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 DROP TABLE t1, r1, r2;
 -- verify there are no distributed tables before we perform the following tests. Preceding
 -- test suites should clean up their distributed tables.
@@ -2404,12 +2252,7 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
 
 (1 row)
 
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
- master_defer_delete_shards
----------------------------------------------------------------------
-                          0
-(1 row)
-
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- verify the reference table is on all nodes after the rebalance
 SELECT count(*)
 FROM pg_dist_shard
diff --git a/src/test/regress/expected/upgrade_list_citus_objects.out b/src/test/regress/expected/upgrade_list_citus_objects.out
index 064e40e89..2b7d7468d 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/expected/upgrade_list_citus_objects.out
+++ b/src/test/regress/expected/upgrade_list_citus_objects.out
@@ -38,6 +38,7 @@ ORDER BY 1;
  function citus_add_rebalance_strategy(name,regproc,regproc,regproc,real,real,real)
  function citus_add_secondary_node(text,integer,text,integer,name)
  function citus_blocking_pids(integer)
+ function citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
  function citus_conninfo_cache_invalidate()
  function citus_copy_shard_placement(bigint,text,integer,text,integer,boolean,citus.shard_transfer_mode)
  function citus_create_restore_point(text)
@@ -245,5 +246,5 @@ ORDER BY 1;
  view citus_worker_stat_activity
  view pg_dist_shard_placement
  view time_partitions
-(229 rows)
+(230 rows)
 
diff --git a/src/test/regress/spec/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.spec b/src/test/regress/spec/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.spec
index ee225f13a..bf8a10eb7 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/spec/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.spec
+++ b/src/test/regress/spec/isolation_rebalancer_deferred_drop.spec
@@ -26,12 +26,11 @@ setup
   SELECT citus_internal.replace_isolation_tester_func();
   SELECT citus_internal.refresh_isolation_tester_prepared_statement();
 
-CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION master_defer_delete_shards()
-    RETURNS int
-    LANGUAGE C STRICT
-    AS 'citus', $$master_defer_delete_shards$$;
-COMMENT ON FUNCTION master_defer_delete_shards()
-    IS 'remove orphaned shards';
+CREATE OR REPLACE PROCEDURE isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
+    LANGUAGE C
+    AS 'citus', $$isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards$$;
+COMMENT ON PROCEDURE isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards()
+    IS 'cleanup orphaned shards';
 
     SET citus.next_shard_id to 120000;
 	SET citus.shard_count TO 8;
@@ -63,6 +62,13 @@ step "s1-move-placement"
     SELECT master_move_shard_placement((SELECT * FROM selected_shard), 'localhost', 57637, 'localhost', 57638);
 }
 
+step "s1-move-placement-back"
+{
+    SET client_min_messages to NOTICE;
+    SHOW log_error_verbosity;
+    SELECT master_move_shard_placement((SELECT * FROM selected_shard), 'localhost', 57638, 'localhost', 57637);
+}
+
 step "s1-move-placement-without-deferred" {
     SET citus.defer_drop_after_shard_move TO OFF;
     SELECT master_move_shard_placement((SELECT * FROM selected_shard), 'localhost', 57637, 'localhost', 57638);
@@ -71,7 +77,8 @@ step "s1-move-placement-without-deferred" {
 
 step "s1-drop-marked-shards"
 {
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    SET client_min_messages to NOTICE;
+    CALL isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 }
 
 step "s1-lock-pg-dist-placement" {
@@ -116,7 +123,7 @@ step "s2-select" {
 step "s2-drop-marked-shards"
 {
     SET client_min_messages to DEBUG1;
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    CALL isolation_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 }
 
 step "s2-commit" {
@@ -127,6 +134,8 @@ step "s2-commit" {
 permutation "s1-begin" "s1-move-placement" "s1-drop-marked-shards" "s2-drop-marked-shards" "s1-commit"
 permutation "s1-begin" "s1-move-placement" "s2-drop-marked-shards" "s1-drop-marked-shards" "s1-commit"
 permutation "s1-begin" "s1-move-placement" "s2-start-session-level-connection" "s2-lock-table-on-worker" "s1-drop-marked-shards" "s1-commit" "s2-stop-connection"
+// make sure we give a clear error when we try to replace an orphaned shard that is still in use
+permutation "s1-begin" "s1-move-placement" "s2-start-session-level-connection" "s2-lock-table-on-worker" "s1-commit" "s1-begin" "s1-move-placement-back" "s1-commit" "s2-stop-connection"
 // make sure we error if we cannot get the lock on pg_dist_placement
 permutation "s1-begin" "s1-lock-pg-dist-placement" "s2-drop-old-shards" "s1-commit"
 permutation "s1-begin" "s2-begin" "s2-select" "s1-move-placement-without-deferred" "s2-commit" "s1-commit"
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.sql
index 6df09f061..546eeb89e 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/foreign_key_to_reference_shard_rebalance.sql
@@ -45,14 +45,14 @@ SELECT master_move_shard_placement(15000009, 'localhost', :worker_1_port, 'local
 
 SELECT count(*) FROM referencing_table2;
 
-SELECT 1 FROM public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM table_fkeys_in_workers WHERE relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' AND refd_relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' ORDER BY 1,2,3;
 
 SELECT master_move_shard_placement(15000009, 'localhost', :worker_2_port, 'localhost', :worker_1_port, 'block_writes');
 
 SELECT count(*) FROM referencing_table2;
 
-SELECT 1 FROM public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM table_fkeys_in_workers WHERE relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' AND refd_relid LIKE 'fkey_to_reference_shard_rebalance.%' ORDER BY 1,2,3;
 
 -- create a function to show the
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/multi_test_helpers_superuser.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/multi_test_helpers_superuser.sql
index 4026c2f00..0bd360b12 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/multi_test_helpers_superuser.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/multi_test_helpers_superuser.sql
@@ -1,10 +1,3 @@
-CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION master_defer_delete_shards()
-    RETURNS int
-    LANGUAGE C STRICT
-    AS 'citus', $$master_defer_delete_shards$$;
-COMMENT ON FUNCTION master_defer_delete_shards()
-    IS 'remove orphaned shards';
-
 CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION wait_until_metadata_sync(timeout INTEGER DEFAULT 15000)
     RETURNS void
     LANGUAGE C STRICT
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/shard_move_deferred_delete.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/shard_move_deferred_delete.sql
index ac82b0680..a052590d5 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/shard_move_deferred_delete.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/shard_move_deferred_delete.sql
@@ -31,8 +31,13 @@ SELECT run_command_on_workers($cmd$
     SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relname = 't1_20000000';
 $cmd$);
 
+-- Make sure this cannot be run in a transaction
+BEGIN;
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+COMMIT;
+
 -- execute delayed removal
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- we expect the shard to be on only the second worker
 SELECT run_command_on_workers($cmd$
@@ -70,7 +75,8 @@ SELECT run_command_on_workers($cmd$
     SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relname = 't1_20000000';
 $cmd$);
 
--- we expect to get an error since the old placement is still there
+-- master_move_shard_placement automatically cleans up orphaned shards if
+-- needed.
 SELECT master_move_shard_placement(20000000, 'localhost', :worker_2_port, 'localhost', :worker_1_port);
 
 
diff --git a/src/test/regress/sql/shard_rebalancer.sql b/src/test/regress/sql/shard_rebalancer.sql
index ce0d0899c..0e41bac74 100644
--- a/src/test/regress/sql/shard_rebalancer.sql
+++ b/src/test/regress/sql/shard_rebalancer.sql
@@ -13,9 +13,9 @@ SELECT 1 FROM master_add_node('localhost', :master_port, groupId=>0);
 
 -- should just be noops even if we add the coordinator to the pg_dist_node
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('dist_table_test');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 
 -- test that calling rebalance_table_shards without specifying relation
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ SELECT citus_add_local_table_to_metadata('citus_local_table');
 INSERT INTO citus_local_table VALUES (1, 2);
 
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- show that citus local table shard is still on the coordinator
 SELECT tablename FROM pg_catalog.pg_tables where tablename like 'citus_local_table_%';
@@ -38,14 +38,14 @@ SELECT pg_reload_conf();
 SELECT pg_sleep(.1); -- wait to make sure the config has changed before running the GUC
 
 SELECT master_drain_node('localhost', :master_port);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.local_hostname;
 SELECT pg_reload_conf();
 SELECT pg_sleep(.1); -- wait to make sure the config has changed before running the GUC
 
 SELECT master_drain_node('localhost', :master_port);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- show that citus local table shard is still on the coordinator
 SELECT tablename FROM pg_catalog.pg_tables where tablename like 'citus_local_table_%';
@@ -396,7 +396,7 @@ AS $$
     pg_dist_shard_placement src USING (shardid),
     (SELECT nodename, nodeport FROM pg_dist_shard_placement ORDER BY nodeport DESC LIMIT 1) dst
     WHERE src.nodeport < dst.nodeport AND s.logicalrelid = rel::regclass;
-    SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+    CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 $$;
 
 CALL create_unbalanced_shards('rebalance_test_table');
@@ -428,7 +428,7 @@ FROM (
          FROM pg_dist_shard
          WHERE logicalrelid = 'rebalance_test_table'::regclass
      ) T;
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 ALTER SYSTEM RESET citus.local_hostname;
 SELECT pg_reload_conf();
@@ -445,7 +445,7 @@ FROM (
     FROM pg_dist_shard
     WHERE logicalrelid = 'rebalance_test_table'::regclass
 ) T;
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
 
@@ -480,26 +480,26 @@ SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table',
 RESET ROLE;
 -- Confirm no moves took place at all during these errors
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table',
     threshold := 0, max_shard_moves := 1,
     shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Check that threshold=1 doesn't move any shards
 
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', threshold := 1, shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Move the remaining shards using threshold=0
 
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', threshold := 0);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
 
@@ -507,7 +507,7 @@ SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
 -- any effects.
 
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT * FROM table_placements_per_node;
 
@@ -602,11 +602,11 @@ SELECT COUNT(*) FROM imbalanced_table;
 
 -- Try force_logical
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('imbalanced_table', threshold:=0, shard_transfer_mode:='force_logical');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- Test rebalance operation
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('imbalanced_table', threshold:=0, shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- Confirm rebalance
 -- Shard counts in each node after rebalance
@@ -633,7 +633,7 @@ SELECT create_distributed_table('colocated_rebalance_test', 'id');
 SELECT master_move_shard_placement(shardid, 'localhost', :worker_2_port, 'localhost', 10000, 'block_writes')
 FROM pg_dist_shard_placement
 WHERE nodeport = :worker_2_port;
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- Try to move shards to a node where shards are not allowed
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_1_port, 'shouldhaveshards', false);
@@ -660,7 +660,7 @@ UPDATE pg_dist_node SET noderole = 'primary' WHERE nodeport = :worker_1_port;
 SELECT master_move_shard_placement(shardid, 'localhost', :worker_2_port, 'localhost', :worker_1_port, 'block_writes')
 FROM pg_dist_shard_placement
 WHERE nodeport = :worker_2_port;
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT create_distributed_table('colocated_rebalance_test2', 'id');
 
@@ -671,7 +671,7 @@ SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, drain_only := true);
 -- Running with drain_only shouldn't do anything
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes', drain_only := true);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- Confirm that nothing changed
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
@@ -684,11 +684,30 @@ SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('colocated_rebalance_test', rebala
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_progress();
 -- Actually do the rebalance
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 -- Check that we can call this function without a crash
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_progress();
 
--- Confirm that the nodes are now there
+-- Confirm that the shards are now there
+SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
+
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
+select * from pg_dist_placement;
+
+
+-- Move all shards to worker1 again
+SELECT master_move_shard_placement(shardid, 'localhost', :worker_2_port, 'localhost', :worker_1_port, 'block_writes')
+FROM pg_dist_shard NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_placement NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_node
+WHERE nodeport = :worker_2_port AND logicalrelid = 'colocated_rebalance_test'::regclass;
+
+-- Confirm that the shards are now all on worker1
+SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
+
+-- Explicitly don't run citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards, rebalance_table_shards
+-- should do that for automatically.
+SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
+
+-- Confirm that the shards are now moved
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 
@@ -702,22 +721,22 @@ SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaves
 
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('non_colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('non_colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Put shards back
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaveshards', true);
 
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('non_colocated_rebalance_test', threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- testing behaviour when setting shouldhaveshards to false and rebalancing all
@@ -725,13 +744,13 @@ SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaveshards', false);
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan(threshold := 0, drain_only := true);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes', drain_only := true);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Put shards back
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaveshards', true);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- testing behaviour when setting shouldhaveshards to false and rebalancing all
@@ -739,13 +758,13 @@ SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaveshards', false);
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan(threshold := 0);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Put shards back
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaveshards', true);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Make it a data node again
@@ -753,14 +772,14 @@ SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaves
 
 -- testing behaviour of master_drain_node
 SELECT * from master_drain_node('localhost', :worker_2_port, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 select shouldhaveshards from pg_dist_node where nodeport = :worker_2_port;
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Put shards back
 SELECT * from master_set_node_property('localhost', :worker_2_port, 'shouldhaveshards', true);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards(threshold := 0, shard_transfer_mode := 'block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 
@@ -829,15 +848,15 @@ SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'by_d
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'by_disk_size', threshold := 0);
 
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'by_disk_size', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'by_disk_size', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes', threshold := 0);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 -- Check that sizes of colocated tables are added together for rebalances
@@ -888,7 +907,7 @@ SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'by_d
 -- supports improvement_threshold
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'by_disk_size', improvement_threshold := 0);
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'by_disk_size', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 ANALYZE tab, tab2;
 
@@ -945,13 +964,13 @@ SELECT citus_add_rebalance_strategy(
 
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'capacity_high_worker_2');
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'capacity_high_worker_2', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 SELECT citus_set_default_rebalance_strategy('capacity_high_worker_2');
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab');
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 CREATE FUNCTION only_worker_1(shardid bigint, nodeidarg int)
@@ -972,7 +991,7 @@ SELECT citus_add_rebalance_strategy(
 SELECT citus_set_default_rebalance_strategy('only_worker_1');
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab');
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM public.table_placements_per_node;
 
 SELECT citus_set_default_rebalance_strategy('by_shard_count');
@@ -981,18 +1000,18 @@ SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab');
 -- Check all the error handling cases
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'non_existing');
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab', rebalance_strategy := 'non_existing');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM master_drain_node('localhost', :worker_2_port, rebalance_strategy := 'non_existing');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT citus_set_default_rebalance_strategy('non_existing');
 
 
 UPDATE pg_dist_rebalance_strategy SET default_strategy=false;
 SELECT * FROM get_rebalance_table_shards_plan('tab');
 SELECT * FROM rebalance_table_shards('tab');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 SELECT * FROM master_drain_node('localhost', :worker_2_port);
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 UPDATE pg_dist_rebalance_strategy SET default_strategy=true WHERE name='by_shard_count';
 
 CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION shard_cost_no_arguments()
@@ -1222,7 +1241,7 @@ SELECT 1 FROM master_add_node('localhost', :master_port, groupId=>0);
 SELECT count(*) FROM pg_dist_shard NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_shard_placement WHERE logicalrelid = 'ref_table'::regclass;
 
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards('rebalance_test_table', shard_transfer_mode:='block_writes');
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 SELECT count(*) FROM pg_dist_shard NATURAL JOIN pg_dist_shard_placement WHERE logicalrelid = 'ref_table'::regclass;
 
@@ -1255,7 +1274,7 @@ INSERT INTO r2 VALUES (1,2), (3,4);
 SELECT 1 from master_add_node('localhost', :worker_2_port);
 
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 DROP TABLE t1, r1, r2;
 
@@ -1282,7 +1301,7 @@ WHERE logicalrelid = 'r1'::regclass;
 
 -- rebalance with _only_ a reference table, this should trigger the copy
 SELECT rebalance_table_shards();
-SELECT public.master_defer_delete_shards();
+CALL citus_cleanup_orphaned_shards();
 
 -- verify the reference table is on all nodes after the rebalance
 SELECT count(*)