diff --git a/pkg/helper/mock/mock_helper.go b/pkg/helper/mock/mock_helper.go
index f19902825..5ef289ac4 100644
--- a/pkg/helper/mock/mock_helper.go
+++ b/pkg/helper/mock/mock_helper.go
@@ -942,6 +942,20 @@ func (mr *MockHostHelpersInterfaceMockRecorder) RemovePersistPFNameUdevRule(pfPc
 	return mr.mock.ctrl.RecordCallWithMethodType(mr.mock, "RemovePersistPFNameUdevRule", reflect.TypeOf((*MockHostHelpersInterface)(nil).RemovePersistPFNameUdevRule), pfPciAddress)
 }
 
+// RemovePfAppliedStatus mocks base method.
+func (m *MockHostHelpersInterface) RemovePfAppliedStatus(pciAddress string) error {
+	m.ctrl.T.Helper()
+	ret := m.ctrl.Call(m, "RemovePfAppliedStatus", pciAddress)
+	ret0, _ := ret[0].(error)
+	return ret0
+}
+
+// RemovePfAppliedStatus indicates an expected call of RemovePfAppliedStatus.
+func (mr *MockHostHelpersInterfaceMockRecorder) RemovePfAppliedStatus(pciAddress interface{}) *gomock.Call {
+	mr.mock.ctrl.T.Helper()
+	return mr.mock.ctrl.RecordCallWithMethodType(mr.mock, "RemovePfAppliedStatus", reflect.TypeOf((*MockHostHelpersInterface)(nil).RemovePfAppliedStatus), pciAddress)
+}
+
 // RemoveVfRepresentorUdevRule mocks base method.
 func (m *MockHostHelpersInterface) RemoveVfRepresentorUdevRule(pfPciAddress string) error {
 	m.ctrl.T.Helper()
diff --git a/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov.go b/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov.go
index ee21b1539..5a110e2ff 100644
--- a/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov.go
+++ b/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov.go
@@ -817,6 +817,13 @@ func (s *sriov) checkForConfigAndReset(ifaceStatus sriovnetworkv1.InterfaceExt,
 		log.Log.V(2).Info("checkForConfigAndReset(): PF name with pci address was externally created skipping the device reset",
 			"pf-name", ifaceStatus.Name,
 			"address", ifaceStatus.PciAddress)
+
+		// remove pf status from host
+		err = storeManager.RemovePfAppliedStatus(ifaceStatus.PciAddress)
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+
 		return nil
 	}
 	err = s.removeUdevRules(ifaceStatus.PciAddress)
@@ -828,6 +835,12 @@ func (s *sriov) checkForConfigAndReset(ifaceStatus sriovnetworkv1.InterfaceExt,
 		return err
 	}
 
+	// remove pf status from host
+	err = storeManager.RemovePfAppliedStatus(ifaceStatus.PciAddress)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
 	return nil
 }
 
diff --git a/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov_test.go b/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov_test.go
index cb647e64d..4a772bb52 100644
--- a/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov_test.go
+++ b/pkg/host/internal/sriov/sriov_test.go
@@ -452,6 +452,7 @@ var _ = Describe("SRIOV", func() {
 				PciAddress: "0000:d8:00.0",
 				NumVfs:     2,
 			}, true, nil)
+			storeManagerMode.EXPECT().RemovePfAppliedStatus("0000:d8:00.0").Return(nil)
 			netlinkLibMock.EXPECT().DevLinkGetDeviceByName("pci", "0000:d8:00.0").Return(
 				&netlink.DevlinkDevice{Attrs: netlink.DevlinkDevAttrs{Eswitch: netlink.DevlinkDevEswitchAttr{Mode: "legacy"}}},
 				nil)
@@ -479,6 +480,7 @@ var _ = Describe("SRIOV", func() {
 				NumVfs:            2,
 				ExternallyManaged: true,
 			}, true, nil)
+			storeManagerMode.EXPECT().RemovePfAppliedStatus("0000:d8:00.0").Return(nil)
 			Expect(s.ConfigSriovInterfaces(storeManagerMode,
 				[]sriovnetworkv1.Interface{},
 				[]sriovnetworkv1.InterfaceExt{
diff --git a/pkg/host/store/mock/mock_store.go b/pkg/host/store/mock/mock_store.go
index 2e0071dfd..d405543a2 100644
--- a/pkg/host/store/mock/mock_store.go
+++ b/pkg/host/store/mock/mock_store.go
@@ -79,6 +79,20 @@ func (mr *MockManagerInterfaceMockRecorder) LoadPfsStatus(pciAddress interface{}
 	return mr.mock.ctrl.RecordCallWithMethodType(mr.mock, "LoadPfsStatus", reflect.TypeOf((*MockManagerInterface)(nil).LoadPfsStatus), pciAddress)
 }
 
+// RemovePfAppliedStatus mocks base method.
+func (m *MockManagerInterface) RemovePfAppliedStatus(pciAddress string) error {
+	m.ctrl.T.Helper()
+	ret := m.ctrl.Call(m, "RemovePfAppliedStatus", pciAddress)
+	ret0, _ := ret[0].(error)
+	return ret0
+}
+
+// RemovePfAppliedStatus indicates an expected call of RemovePfAppliedStatus.
+func (mr *MockManagerInterfaceMockRecorder) RemovePfAppliedStatus(pciAddress interface{}) *gomock.Call {
+	mr.mock.ctrl.T.Helper()
+	return mr.mock.ctrl.RecordCallWithMethodType(mr.mock, "RemovePfAppliedStatus", reflect.TypeOf((*MockManagerInterface)(nil).RemovePfAppliedStatus), pciAddress)
+}
+
 // SaveLastPfAppliedStatus mocks base method.
 func (m *MockManagerInterface) SaveLastPfAppliedStatus(PfInfo *v1.Interface) error {
 	m.ctrl.T.Helper()
diff --git a/pkg/host/store/store.go b/pkg/host/store/store.go
index 77e4bbd32..67c0b17e3 100644
--- a/pkg/host/store/store.go
+++ b/pkg/host/store/store.go
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import (
 type ManagerInterface interface {
 	ClearPCIAddressFolder() error
 	SaveLastPfAppliedStatus(PfInfo *sriovnetworkv1.Interface) error
+	RemovePfAppliedStatus(pciAddress string) error
 	LoadPfsStatus(pciAddress string) (*sriovnetworkv1.Interface, bool, error)
 
 	GetCheckPointNodeState() (*sriovnetworkv1.SriovNetworkNodeState, error)
@@ -111,6 +112,17 @@ func (s *manager) SaveLastPfAppliedStatus(PfInfo *sriovnetworkv1.Interface) erro
 	return err
 }
 
+func (s *manager) RemovePfAppliedStatus(pciAddress string) error {
+	hostExtension := utils.GetHostExtension()
+	pathFile := filepath.Join(hostExtension, consts.PfAppliedConfig, pciAddress)
+	err := os.RemoveAll(pathFile)
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Log.Error(err, "failed to remove PF status", "pathFile", pathFile)
+		return err
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
 // LoadPfsStatus convert the /etc/sriov-operator/pci/<pci-address> json to pfstatus
 // returns false if the file doesn't exist.
 func (s *manager) LoadPfsStatus(pciAddress string) (*sriovnetworkv1.Interface, bool, error) {
diff --git a/pkg/plugins/mellanox/mellanox_plugin.go b/pkg/plugins/mellanox/mellanox_plugin.go
index 87363464b..353080e42 100644
--- a/pkg/plugins/mellanox/mellanox_plugin.go
+++ b/pkg/plugins/mellanox/mellanox_plugin.go
@@ -143,6 +143,11 @@ func (p *MellanoxPlugin) OnNodeStateChange(new *sriovnetworkv1.SriovNetworkNodeS
 		processedNics[pciPrefix] = true
 		pciAddress := pciPrefix + "0"
 
+		// Skip devices not configured by the operator
+		if p.nicNotConfiguredByOperator(portsMap) {
+			continue
+		}
+
 		// Skip externally managed NICs
 		if p.nicHasExternallyManagedPFs(portsMap) {
 			continue
@@ -206,3 +211,19 @@ func (p *MellanoxPlugin) nicHasExternallyManagedPFs(nicPortsMap map[string]sriov
 	}
 	return false
 }
+
+// nicNotConfiguredByOperator returns true if one of the ports(interface) of the NIC is not configured by operator
+func (p *MellanoxPlugin) nicNotConfiguredByOperator(nicPortsMap map[string]sriovnetworkv1.InterfaceExt) bool {
+	for _, iface := range nicPortsMap {
+		_, exist, err := p.helpers.LoadPfsStatus(iface.PciAddress)
+		if err != nil {
+			log.Log.Error(err, "failed to load PF status from disk", "address", iface.PciAddress)
+			continue
+		}
+		if exist {
+			log.Log.V(2).Info("PF configured by the operator", "interface", iface)
+			return true
+		}
+	}
+	return false
+}
diff --git a/test/conformance/tests/test_sriov_operator.go b/test/conformance/tests/test_sriov_operator.go
index d72f6a57a..e1c246af5 100644
--- a/test/conformance/tests/test_sriov_operator.go
+++ b/test/conformance/tests/test_sriov_operator.go
@@ -1222,7 +1222,7 @@ var _ = Describe("[sriov] operator", func() {
 				It("Should be possible to create a vfio-pci resource and allocate to a pod", func() {
 					By("creating a vfio-pci node policy")
 					resourceName := "testvfio"
-					_, err := network.CreateSriovPolicy(clients, "test-policy-", operatorNamespace, vfioNic.Name, vfioNode, 5, resourceName, "vfio-pci")
+					vfioPolicy, err := network.CreateSriovPolicy(clients, "test-policy-", operatorNamespace, vfioNic.Name, vfioNode, 5, resourceName, "vfio-pci")
 					Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 
 					By("waiting for the node state to be updated")
@@ -1249,6 +1249,11 @@ var _ = Describe("[sriov] operator", func() {
 						return allocatable
 					}, 10*time.Minute, time.Second).Should(Equal(int64(5)))
 
+					By("validate the pf info exist on host")
+					output, _, err := runCommandOnConfigDaemon(vfioNode, "/bin/bash", "-c", "ls /host/etc/sriov-operator/pci/ | wc -l")
+					Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+					Expect(output).ToNot(Equal("1"))
+
 					By("Creating sriov network to use the vfio device")
 					sriovNetwork := &sriovv1.SriovNetwork{
 						ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
@@ -1278,6 +1283,25 @@ var _ = Describe("[sriov] operator", func() {
 					networkStatusJSON, exist := firstPod.Annotations["k8s.v1.cni.cncf.io/network-status"]
 					Expect(exist).To(BeTrue())
 					Expect(networkStatusJSON).To(ContainSubstring(fmt.Sprintf("\"mtu\": %d", vfioNic.Mtu)))
+
+					By("deleting the policy")
+					err = clients.Delete(context.Background(), vfioPolicy, &runtimeclient.DeleteOptions{})
+					Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+					WaitForSRIOVStable()
+
+					Eventually(func() int64 {
+						testedNode, err := clients.CoreV1Interface.Nodes().Get(context.Background(), vfioNode, metav1.GetOptions{})
+						Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+						resNum := testedNode.Status.Allocatable[corev1.ResourceName("openshift.io/"+resourceName)]
+						allocatable, _ := resNum.AsInt64()
+						return allocatable
+					}, 2*time.Minute, time.Second).Should(Equal(int64(0)))
+
+					By("validate the pf info doesn't exist on the host anymore")
+					output, _, err = runCommandOnConfigDaemon(vfioNode, "/bin/bash", "-c", "ls /host/etc/sriov-operator/pci/ | wc -l")
+					Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+					Expect(output).ToNot(Equal("0"))
+
 				})
 			})
 
@@ -2196,15 +2220,19 @@ var _ = Describe("[sriov] operator", func() {
 		Context("ExternallyManaged Validation", func() {
 			numVfs := 5
 			var node string
-			var nic *sriovv1.InterfaceExt
+			var nic sriovv1.InterfaceExt
 			externallyManage := func(policy *sriovv1.SriovNetworkNodePolicy) {
 				policy.Spec.ExternallyManaged = true
 			}
 
 			execute.BeforeAll(func() {
-				var err error
-				node, nic, err = sriovInfos.FindOneSriovNodeAndDevice()
-				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+				node, nic = sriovInfos.FindOneVfioSriovDevice()
+			})
+
+			BeforeEach(func() {
+				if node == "" {
+					Skip("not suitable device found for the test")
+				}
 
 				By("Using device " + nic.Name + " on node " + node)
 			})
@@ -2265,6 +2293,11 @@ var _ = Describe("[sriov] operator", func() {
 					return allocatable
 				}, 3*time.Minute, time.Second).Should(Equal(int64(numVfs)))
 
+				By("validate the pf info exist on host")
+				output, _, err := runCommandOnConfigDaemon(node, "/bin/bash", "-c", "ls /host/etc/sriov-operator/pci/ | wc -l")
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+				Expect(output).ToNot(Equal("1"))
+
 				By("deleting the policy")
 				err = clients.Delete(context.Background(), sriovPolicy, &runtimeclient.DeleteOptions{})
 				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
@@ -2279,11 +2312,16 @@ var _ = Describe("[sriov] operator", func() {
 				}, 2*time.Minute, time.Second).Should(Equal(int64(0)))
 
 				By("checking the virtual functions are still on the host")
-				output, errOutput, err := runCommandOnConfigDaemon(node, "/bin/bash", "-c", fmt.Sprintf("cat /host/sys/class/net/%s/device/sriov_numvfs", nic.Name))
+				output, errOutput, err = runCommandOnConfigDaemon(node, "/bin/bash", "-c", fmt.Sprintf("cat /host/sys/class/net/%s/device/sriov_numvfs", nic.Name))
 				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
 				Expect(errOutput).To(Equal(""))
 				Expect(output).To(ContainSubstring("5"))
 
+				By("validate the pf info doesn't exist on the host anymore")
+				output, _, err = runCommandOnConfigDaemon(node, "/bin/bash", "-c", "ls /host/etc/sriov-operator/pci/ | wc -l")
+				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())
+				Expect(output).ToNot(Equal("0"))
+
 				By("cleaning the manual sriov created")
 				_, errOutput, err = runCommandOnConfigDaemon(node, "/bin/bash", "-c", fmt.Sprintf("echo 0 > /host/sys/class/net/%s/device/sriov_numvfs", nic.Name))
 				Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred())