diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.test.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.test.ts
index 3134461fda1..fdd719cb91f 100644
--- a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.test.ts
@@ -186,9 +186,9 @@ describe('deployAndLaunchRelay', () => {
     expect(progress).toContain('Starting relay...')
   })
 
-  it('does not launch fresh after unconfirmed stale-socket cleanup', async () => {
+  it('does not launch fresh after an unconfirmed endpoint-incumbent probe', async () => {
     const conn = makeMockConnection()
-    const unconfirmedCleanup = Object.assign(new Error('socket cleanup still running'), {
+    const unconfirmedCleanup = Object.assign(new Error('endpoint probe still running'), {
       sshChannelCloseConfirmed: false
     })
     vi.mocked(waitForSentinel).mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error('stale relay reconnect failed'))
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.ts
index 911d185b0fd..124fb68bbcc 100644
--- a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.ts
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-deploy.ts
@@ -77,6 +77,8 @@ import {
 import { detectRemoteHostPlatform } from './ssh-remote-platform-detection'
 import { powerShellCommand, powerShellLiteral, powerShellNativeArg } from './ssh-remote-powershell'
 import { relaySocketNameForInstanceId } from './ssh-relay-instance-id'
+import { resolveRelayEndpointBeforeRelaunch } from './ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover'
+import { sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints } from './ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints'
 import { isSshSessionLimitError } from './ssh-session-limit-error'
 import {
   isWindowsRelayPipePath,
@@ -580,6 +582,17 @@ async function deployAndLaunchRelayAttempt(
     hostPlatform,
     recoverOneStaleRelayUploadStageCommand(hostPlatform, uploadStagePoolDir)
   )
+    .catch(() => {})
+    // Why before GC: a superseded relay pins its version dir via the live-socket probe, so the
+    // sweep has to settle first or GC keeps every orphan's tree forever.
+    .then(() =>
+      sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(conn, hostPlatform, {
+        remoteHome,
+        currentRelayDir: remoteRelayDir,
+        sockName: relaySocketNameForInstanceId(relayInstanceId),
+        nodePath: launched.nodePath
+      })
+    )
     .catch(() => {})
     .then(() =>
       gcOldRelayVersions(conn, remoteHome, remoteRelayDir, hostPlatform, {
@@ -1457,17 +1470,15 @@ async function launchRelay(
       } catch (err) {
         signal?.throwIfAborted()
         console.warn(
-          '[ssh-relay] Socket reconnect failed, launching fresh relay:',
+          '[ssh-relay] Socket reconnect failed, establishing what owns the endpoint:',
           err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err)
         )
-        // Why: stale socket from a crashed relay — remove it so the fresh launch can bind at the same path.
-        await execCommand(conn, `rm -f ${shellEscape(sockFile)}`, { signal }).catch(
-          (cleanupErr) => {
-            if (isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination(cleanupErr)) {
-              throw cleanupErr
-            }
-          }
-        )
+        // Why not `rm -f`: unlinking does not close the listener the incumbent already holds,
+        // so a refused --connect (version mismatch, rotated credential) used to leave a live
+        // relay running forever with its PTYs while a replacement bound the same path (#8585).
+        await resolveRelayEndpointBeforeRelaunch(conn, hostPlatform, nodePath, sockFile, err, {
+          signal
+        })
         signal?.throwIfAborted()
       }
     }
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent-shell.integration.test.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent-shell.integration.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..7ece0b6532e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent-shell.integration.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,170 @@
+/**
+ * The probe and reap scripts run on someone else's machine and decide whether a process is
+ * signalled, so the shell itself is the part worth testing for real. These cases run the
+ * generated scripts through /bin/sh against real unix sockets and real processes.
+ */
+import { execFile, spawn, type ChildProcess } from 'node:child_process'
+import { mkdtempSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os'
+import { join } from 'node:path'
+import { afterAll, afterEach, beforeAll, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+import {
+  isReapableRelayHusk,
+  parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe,
+  relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand,
+  type RelayEndpointIncumbent
+} from './ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent'
+import { reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand } from './ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover'
+
+const posixOnly = process.platform === 'win32' ? describe.skip : describe
+
+const FAKE_RELAY_SOURCE = `
+const net = require('net')
+const sock = process.argv[process.argv.indexOf('--sock-path') + 1]
+if (process.argv.includes('--with-child')) {
+  require('child_process').spawn(process.execPath, ['-e', 'setInterval(() => {}, 1000)'], {
+    stdio: 'ignore'
+  })
+}
+net.createServer(() => {}).listen(sock, () => process.stdout.write('READY\\n'))
+process.on('SIGTERM', () => process.exit(0))
+`
+
+function sh(script: string): Promise<string> {
+  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+    execFile('/bin/sh', ['-c', script], { timeout: 20_000 }, (error, stdout) => {
+      if (error) {
+        reject(error)
+        return
+      }
+      resolve(stdout)
+    })
+  })
+}
+
+let workDir: string
+let hasLsof = false
+const running: ChildProcess[] = []
+
+function startFakeRelay(sockPath: string, withChild = false): Promise<ChildProcess> {
+  const args = [join(workDir, 'relay.js'), '--sock-path', sockPath]
+  if (withChild) {
+    args.push('--with-child')
+  }
+  const child = spawn(process.execPath, args, { stdio: ['ignore', 'pipe', 'ignore'] })
+  running.push(child)
+  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+    child.stdout.on('data', (chunk: Buffer) => {
+      if (chunk.toString().includes('READY')) {
+        resolve(child)
+      }
+    })
+    child.on('exit', () => reject(new Error('fake relay exited before listening')))
+  })
+}
+
+async function probe(sockPath: string): Promise<RelayEndpointIncumbent> {
+  const output = await sh(relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand(process.execPath, sockPath))
+  return parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(sockPath, output)
+}
+
+beforeAll(async () => {
+  workDir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'orca-relay-incumbent-'))
+  writeFileSync(join(workDir, 'relay.js'), FAKE_RELAY_SOURCE)
+  hasLsof = await sh('command -v lsof >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo yes || echo no').then(
+    (out) => out.trim() === 'yes'
+  )
+})
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  while (running.length > 0) {
+    running.pop()?.kill('SIGKILL')
+  }
+})
+
+afterAll(() => {
+  rmSync(workDir, { recursive: true, force: true })
+})
+
+it('runs the holder-enumeration assertions on this machine', () => {
+  // Why asserted rather than assumed: the cases below degrade to verdict-only checks without
+  // lsof, and a silently degraded suite would stop covering the reap gate entirely.
+  expect(hasLsof).toBe(true)
+})
+
+posixOnly('relay endpoint probe against a real socket', () => {
+  it('reports live, and identifies the holding process, for a listening relay', async () => {
+    const sockPath = join(workDir, 'live.sock')
+    const relay = await startFakeRelay(sockPath)
+    const incumbent = await probe(sockPath)
+
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('live')
+    expect(incumbent.evidence).toBe('accepted-connection')
+    expect(incumbent.socketPresent).toBe(true)
+    if (!hasLsof) {
+      return
+    }
+    expect(incumbent.holders.map((holder) => holder.pid)).toEqual([relay.pid])
+    expect(incumbent.holders[0]).toMatchObject({ matchesRelayArgv: true, childCount: 0 })
+    expect(isReapableRelayHusk(incumbent)).toBe(true)
+  })
+
+  it('refuses to call a relay with a live child an empty husk', async () => {
+    const sockPath = join(workDir, 'busy.sock')
+    await startFakeRelay(sockPath, true)
+    const incumbent = await probe(sockPath)
+
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('live')
+    if (!hasLsof) {
+      return
+    }
+    expect(incumbent.holders[0].childCount).toBeGreaterThan(0)
+    expect(isReapableRelayHusk(incumbent)).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('reports exited for a socket inode a SIGKILLed relay left behind', async () => {
+    const sockPath = join(workDir, 'stale.sock')
+    const relay = await startFakeRelay(sockPath)
+    relay.kill('SIGKILL')
+    await new Promise((resolve) => relay.on('exit', resolve))
+
+    const incumbent = await probe(sockPath)
+    expect(incumbent.socketPresent).toBe(true)
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe(hasLsof ? 'exited' : 'unverifiable')
+  })
+
+  it('reports no listener for a path that was never bound', async () => {
+    const incumbent = await probe(join(workDir, 'never-existed.sock'))
+    expect(incumbent.socketPresent).toBe(false)
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe(hasLsof ? 'exited' : 'unverifiable')
+  })
+})
+
+posixOnly('empty relay husk reap against a real process', () => {
+  it('terminates a proven-empty relay and confirms the pid is gone', async () => {
+    const sockPath = join(workDir, 'husk.sock')
+    const relay = await startFakeRelay(sockPath)
+    const output = await sh(reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(relay.pid!, sockPath))
+    expect(output.trim()).toBe('GONE')
+  })
+
+  it('refuses to signal a relay that acquired a child after it was probed', async () => {
+    const sockPath = join(workDir, 'raced.sock')
+    const relay = await startFakeRelay(sockPath, true)
+    const output = await sh(reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(relay.pid!, sockPath))
+    expect(output.trim()).toBe('BUSY')
+    expect(relay.killed).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('refuses to signal a pid whose argv is not this relay at this socket', async () => {
+    const sockPath = join(workDir, 'mismatch.sock')
+    await startFakeRelay(sockPath)
+    const bystander = spawn(process.execPath, ['-e', 'setInterval(() => {}, 1000)'], {
+      stdio: 'ignore'
+    })
+    running.push(bystander)
+    const output = await sh(reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(bystander.pid!, sockPath))
+    expect(output.trim()).toBe('MISMATCH')
+    expect(bystander.killed).toBe(false)
+  })
+})
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent.test.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..a65cb33fc57
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,240 @@
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+
+const execCommand = vi.fn()
+vi.mock('./ssh-relay-deploy-helpers', () => ({
+  execCommand: (...args: unknown[]) => execCommand(...args),
+  isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination: (error: unknown) =>
+    (error as { sshChannelCloseConfirmed?: boolean } | null)?.sshChannelCloseConfirmed === false
+}))
+
+import {
+  describeRelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  isReapableRelayHusk,
+  mayLaunchOverRelayEndpoint,
+  parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe,
+  probeRelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand,
+  withHandshakeRefusalEvidence,
+  type RelayEndpointIncumbent
+} from './ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent'
+import type { SshConnection } from './ssh-connection'
+import { getRemoteHostPlatform } from './ssh-remote-platform'
+
+const SOCK = '/home/u/.orca-remote/relay-0.1.0+aaaa/relay-deadbeef.sock'
+const POSIX_HOST = getRemoteHostPlatform('linux-x64')
+const WINDOWS_HOST = getRemoteHostPlatform('win32-x64')
+
+function probeOutput(lines: string[]): string {
+  return ['ORCA-INCUMBENT-BEGIN', ...lines, 'ORCA-INCUMBENT-END'].join('\n')
+}
+
+describe('parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe', () => {
+  it('reports live when the socket accepted a connection', () => {
+    const incumbent = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=4242 yes 13'])
+    )
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('live')
+    expect(incumbent.evidence).toBe('accepted-connection')
+    expect(incumbent.holders).toEqual([{ pid: 4242, matchesRelayArgv: true, childCount: 13 }])
+  })
+
+  it('reports live when a process still holds an inode that refuses connections', () => {
+    const incumbent = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=91 yes 2'])
+    )
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('live')
+    expect(incumbent.evidence).toBe('holder-process')
+  })
+
+  it('reports exited only when the connect was refused AND nothing holds the socket', () => {
+    const incumbent = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof'])
+    )
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('exited')
+    expect(incumbent.evidence).toBe('no-holder')
+    expect(incumbent.socketPresent).toBe(true)
+  })
+
+  it('reports unverifiable when the host cannot enumerate socket holders', () => {
+    const incumbent = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable'])
+    )
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('unverifiable')
+    expect(incumbent.holdersEnumerable).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('reports unverifiable when the connect probe timed out', () => {
+    const incumbent = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=unknown', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof'])
+    )
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('unverifiable')
+  })
+
+  it('reports unverifiable for truncated or garbled probe output', () => {
+    expect(parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(SOCK, 'PRESENT=yes\nLISTEN=refused').verdict).toBe(
+      'unverifiable'
+    )
+    expect(parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(SOCK, '').verdict).toBe('unverifiable')
+  })
+
+  it('drops holder lines that do not carry a usable pid', () => {
+    const incumbent = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=- no unknown'])
+    )
+    expect(incumbent.holders).toEqual([])
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('exited')
+  })
+
+  it('keeps an unreadable child count as null rather than zero', () => {
+    const [holder] = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=7 yes unknown'])
+    ).holders
+    expect(holder.childCount).toBeNull()
+  })
+})
+
+describe('probeRelayEndpointIncumbent', () => {
+  it('never asserts death when the probe itself could not run', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error('channel closed'))
+    const incumbent = await probeRelayEndpointIncumbent(
+      {} as SshConnection,
+      POSIX_HOST,
+      '/usr/bin/node',
+      SOCK
+    )
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('unverifiable')
+    expect(incumbent.holders).toEqual([])
+  })
+
+  it('does not shell out on Windows hosts, where the endpoint is a named pipe', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockClear()
+    const incumbent = await probeRelayEndpointIncumbent(
+      {} as SshConnection,
+      WINDOWS_HOST,
+      'node.exe',
+      SOCK
+    )
+    expect(execCommand).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('unverifiable')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand', () => {
+  it('ANDs the lsof selectors so it cannot match unrelated unix-socket holders', () => {
+    expect(relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand('/usr/bin/node', SOCK)).toContain(
+      'lsof -t -a -U "$sock"'
+    )
+  })
+
+  it('never mutates the host: no unlink, no signal', () => {
+    const command = relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand('/usr/bin/node', SOCK)
+    expect(command).not.toMatch(/\brm\b/)
+    expect(command).not.toMatch(/\bkill\b/)
+  })
+})
+
+describe('withHandshakeRefusalEvidence', () => {
+  it('upgrades an unenumerable endpoint to live when the daemon answered the handshake', () => {
+    const probed = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=unknown', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable'])
+    )
+    const incumbent = withHandshakeRefusalEvidence(probed)
+    expect(incumbent.verdict).toBe('live')
+    expect(incumbent.evidence).toBe('handshake-refusal')
+    expect(mayLaunchOverRelayEndpoint(incumbent)).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('leaves stronger evidence in place', () => {
+    const probed = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof'])
+    )
+    expect(withHandshakeRefusalEvidence(probed).evidence).toBe('accepted-connection')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('mayLaunchOverRelayEndpoint', () => {
+  const verdicts: RelayEndpointIncumbent['verdict'][] = ['live', 'unverifiable', 'exited']
+  it.each(verdicts)('permits a relaunch for %s only when it is not live', (verdict) => {
+    const incumbent = { ...parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(SOCK, ''), verdict }
+    expect(mayLaunchOverRelayEndpoint(incumbent)).toBe(verdict !== 'live')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('isReapableRelayHusk', () => {
+  const husk = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+    SOCK,
+    probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=500 yes 0'])
+  )
+
+  it('accepts a single proven relay holder with zero children', () => {
+    expect(isReapableRelayHusk(husk)).toBe(true)
+  })
+
+  it('refuses a relay that still holds children', () => {
+    expect(
+      isReapableRelayHusk({
+        ...husk,
+        holders: [{ pid: 500, matchesRelayArgv: true, childCount: 1 }]
+      })
+    ).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('refuses a holder whose child count could not be read', () => {
+    expect(
+      isReapableRelayHusk({
+        ...husk,
+        holders: [{ pid: 500, matchesRelayArgv: true, childCount: null }]
+      })
+    ).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('refuses a holder whose argv is not this relay at this socket', () => {
+    expect(
+      isReapableRelayHusk({
+        ...husk,
+        holders: [{ pid: 500, matchesRelayArgv: false, childCount: 0 }]
+      })
+    ).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('refuses when more than one process holds the socket', () => {
+    expect(
+      isReapableRelayHusk({
+        ...husk,
+        holders: [
+          { pid: 500, matchesRelayArgv: true, childCount: 0 },
+          { pid: 501, matchesRelayArgv: true, childCount: 0 }
+        ]
+      })
+    ).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('refuses an unverifiable endpoint however empty it looks', () => {
+    expect(isReapableRelayHusk({ ...husk, verdict: 'unverifiable' })).toBe(false)
+    expect(isReapableRelayHusk({ ...husk, holdersEnumerable: false })).toBe(false)
+  })
+})
+
+describe('describeRelayEndpointIncumbent', () => {
+  it('distinguishes "no holders" from "could not enumerate holders"', () => {
+    const none = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof'])
+    )
+    const unknown = parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+      SOCK,
+      probeOutput(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable'])
+    )
+    expect(describeRelayEndpointIncumbent(none)).toContain('holders=none')
+    expect(describeRelayEndpointIncumbent(unknown)).toContain('holders=unenumerable')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..2688267f4c7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,285 @@
+/**
+ * Who currently owns a relay socket path, answered with host evidence.
+ *
+ * The client used to answer this by assumption: a failed `--connect` was read as "the relay
+ * crashed", the socket was `rm -f`'d, and a fresh relay bound the same path. Unlinking a unix
+ * socket does not close the listener the incumbent already holds, so an alive-but-refusing
+ * relay (the `RelayVersionMismatchError` case, and the credential-rotation case) was left
+ * running forever with its PTYs (#8585).
+ *
+ * The verdict vocabulary is fixed by docs/reference/ssh-execution-boundary.md — `live` /
+ * `unverifiable` / `exited`, with no synonyms and no collapsing. Two consequences are load
+ * bearing here:
+ *
+ * - `exited` is a claim about **this endpoint**, not about every relay on the host. It means
+ *   nothing holds this socket path, established positively (a connect that was refused *and*
+ *   an enumeration that found no holder). A relay whose socket was already unlinked is
+ *   invisible to this probe by construction — that is what the superseded sweep is for.
+ * - a probe that could not run, a host without `lsof`, or a connect that failed for any other
+ *   reason is `unverifiable`. It never authorizes unlinking, rebinding over, or signalling.
+ */
+import type { SshConnection } from './ssh-connection'
+import { shellEscape } from './ssh-connection-utils'
+import { execCommand, isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination } from './ssh-relay-deploy-helpers'
+import { isWindowsRemoteHost, type RemoteHostPlatform } from './ssh-remote-platform'
+
+export type RelayEndpointVerdict = 'live' | 'unverifiable' | 'exited'
+
+export type RelayEndpointEvidence =
+  | 'accepted-connection'
+  | 'handshake-refusal'
+  | 'holder-process'
+  | 'no-holder'
+  | 'inconclusive'
+
+export type RelayEndpointHolder = {
+  pid: number
+  /** The holder's argv names relay.js AND this exact socket path. */
+  matchesRelayArgv: boolean
+  /** Direct children, or null when `pgrep` could not answer. Never guessed. */
+  childCount: number | null
+}
+
+export type RelayEndpointIncumbent = {
+  sockPath: string
+  verdict: RelayEndpointVerdict
+  evidence: RelayEndpointEvidence
+  socketPresent: boolean
+  /** Pids proven to hold this exact socket. Empty when the host could not enumerate them. */
+  holders: RelayEndpointHolder[]
+  /** False when no enumeration tool was available — an empty `holders` then proves nothing. */
+  holdersEnumerable: boolean
+}
+
+const PROBE_BEGIN = 'ORCA-INCUMBENT-BEGIN'
+const PROBE_END = 'ORCA-INCUMBENT-END'
+const CONNECT_PROBE_TIMEOUT_MS = 1000
+
+// Why ES5 syntax: nodePath may be a host-resolved system node, not the bundled one.
+const CONNECT_PROBE_JS = [
+  'var s=require("net").connect(process.argv[1]);',
+  'var done=false;',
+  'function say(v){if(done)return;done=true;try{s.destroy()}catch(e){};',
+  'process.stdout.write(v);process.exit(0)}',
+  's.on("connect",function(){say("accepted")});',
+  's.on("error",function(e){',
+  'say(e.code==="ECONNREFUSED"?"refused":e.code==="ENOENT"?"absent":"unknown")});',
+  `setTimeout(function(){say("unknown")},${CONNECT_PROBE_TIMEOUT_MS})`
+].join('')
+
+/**
+ * A POSIX probe that reports only what the host actually observed. Every field has an
+ * explicit "could not tell" value; nothing is inferred from a missing tool.
+ */
+export function relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand(nodePath: string, sockPath: string): string {
+  const sock = shellEscape(sockPath)
+  const node = shellEscape(nodePath)
+  return [
+    `sock=${sock}`,
+    `node=${node}`,
+    `printf '%s\\n' ${shellEscape(PROBE_BEGIN)}`,
+    'if [ -S "$sock" ]; then',
+    "  printf 'PRESENT=yes\\n'",
+    `  listen=$("$node" -e ${shellEscape(CONNECT_PROBE_JS)} "$sock" 2>/dev/null) || listen=unknown`,
+    '  [ -n "$listen" ] || listen=unknown',
+    'else',
+    "  printf 'PRESENT=no\\n'",
+    '  listen=absent',
+    'fi',
+    'printf \'LISTEN=%s\\n\' "$listen"',
+    'if command -v lsof >/dev/null 2>&1; then',
+    "  printf 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof\\n'",
+    // Why -a: lsof ORs its selectors, so without it every unix-socket holder on the box
+    // would be reported as holding this path (#8762).
+    '  for pid in $(lsof -t -a -U "$sock" 2>/dev/null); do',
+    '    args=$(ps -o args= -p "$pid" 2>/dev/null | tr "\\n" " ")',
+    '    match=no',
+    '    case "$args" in *relay.js*"$sock"*) match=yes ;; esac',
+    '    kids=unknown',
+    '    if command -v pgrep >/dev/null 2>&1; then',
+    '      kids=$(pgrep -P "$pid" 2>/dev/null | grep -c .)',
+    '    fi',
+    '    printf \'HOLDER=%s %s %s\\n\' "$pid" "$match" "$kids"',
+    '  done',
+    'else',
+    "  printf 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable\\n'",
+    'fi',
+    `printf '%s\\n' ${shellEscape(PROBE_END)}`
+  ].join('\n')
+}
+
+export function parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(
+  sockPath: string,
+  output: string
+): RelayEndpointIncumbent {
+  const lines = output.split('\n').map((line) => line.trim())
+  if (!lines.includes(PROBE_BEGIN) || !lines.includes(PROBE_END)) {
+    return unverifiableEndpoint(sockPath)
+  }
+  const socketPresent = lines.includes('PRESENT=yes')
+  const listen = lines.find((line) => line.startsWith('LISTEN='))?.slice('LISTEN='.length) ?? ''
+  const holdersEnumerable = lines.includes('HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof')
+  const holders = lines
+    .filter((line) => line.startsWith('HOLDER='))
+    .map((line) => parseHolder(line.slice('HOLDER='.length)))
+    .filter((holder): holder is RelayEndpointHolder => holder !== null)
+
+  if (listen === 'accepted') {
+    return {
+      sockPath,
+      verdict: 'live',
+      evidence: 'accepted-connection',
+      socketPresent,
+      holders,
+      holdersEnumerable
+    }
+  }
+  if (holders.length > 0) {
+    // The inode is held by a running process that is not accepting — wedged, not gone.
+    return {
+      sockPath,
+      verdict: 'live',
+      evidence: 'holder-process',
+      socketPresent,
+      holders,
+      holdersEnumerable
+    }
+  }
+  if (holdersEnumerable && (listen === 'refused' || listen === 'absent')) {
+    return {
+      sockPath,
+      verdict: 'exited',
+      evidence: 'no-holder',
+      socketPresent,
+      holders,
+      holdersEnumerable
+    }
+  }
+  return { ...unverifiableEndpoint(sockPath), socketPresent, holders, holdersEnumerable }
+}
+
+function parseHolder(value: string): RelayEndpointHolder | null {
+  const [rawPid, rawMatch, rawKids] = value.split(/\s+/)
+  const pid = Number.parseInt(rawPid ?? '', 10)
+  if (!Number.isInteger(pid) || pid <= 0) {
+    return null
+  }
+  const childCount = Number.parseInt(rawKids ?? '', 10)
+  return {
+    pid,
+    matchesRelayArgv: rawMatch === 'yes',
+    childCount: Number.isInteger(childCount) && childCount >= 0 ? childCount : null
+  }
+}
+
+function unverifiableEndpoint(sockPath: string): RelayEndpointIncumbent {
+  return {
+    sockPath,
+    verdict: 'unverifiable',
+    evidence: 'inconclusive',
+    socketPresent: false,
+    holders: [],
+    holdersEnumerable: false
+  }
+}
+
+export async function probeRelayEndpointIncumbent(
+  conn: SshConnection,
+  hostPlatform: RemoteHostPlatform,
+  nodePath: string,
+  sockPath: string,
+  options?: { signal?: AbortSignal }
+): Promise<RelayEndpointIncumbent> {
+  // Windows relays are named pipes: there is no inode to unlink and no `lsof`, so the
+  // orphan-by-unlink mechanism this probe defends against cannot occur there.
+  if (isWindowsRemoteHost(hostPlatform)) {
+    return unverifiableEndpoint(sockPath)
+  }
+  try {
+    const output = await execCommand(conn, relayEndpointIncumbentProbeCommand(nodePath, sockPath), {
+      wrapCommand: true,
+      signal: options?.signal
+    })
+    return parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(sockPath, output)
+  } catch (err) {
+    // An exec whose channel never confirmed close may still be running remotely; the caller
+    // must not race a detached launch against it.
+    if (isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination(err)) {
+      throw err
+    }
+    // Any other unanswered probe observes nothing. It is never evidence of death.
+    return unverifiableEndpoint(sockPath)
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * A relay that told us its version over the wire is `live` by positive host evidence, even on
+ * a host where nothing can enumerate socket holders.
+ */
+export function withHandshakeRefusalEvidence(
+  incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent
+): RelayEndpointIncumbent {
+  if (incumbent.verdict === 'live') {
+    return incumbent
+  }
+  return { ...incumbent, verdict: 'live', evidence: 'handshake-refusal' }
+}
+
+/**
+ * May a fresh relay be launched onto this path?
+ *
+ * Only `live` forbids it. `unverifiable` is permitted because the *daemon* — not the client —
+ * performs the takeover: `RelaySocketOwnership.listen` re-probes on EADDRINUSE, refuses to
+ * steal a path that accepts connections, and only unlinks an inode whose identity is
+ * unchanged. That check is atomic with the bind, which a client-side `rm -f` can never be.
+ */
+export function mayLaunchOverRelayEndpoint(incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent): boolean {
+  return incumbent.verdict !== 'live'
+}
+
+/**
+ * A live relay that provably holds nothing: identity confirmed against its argv, exactly one
+ * holder, and zero children. Reaping it destroys no user work. Anything less is retained —
+ * killing the wrong pid on someone's remote host is the worst outcome available here.
+ */
+export function isReapableRelayHusk(incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent): boolean {
+  if (incumbent.verdict !== 'live' || !incumbent.holdersEnumerable) {
+    return false
+  }
+  if (incumbent.holders.length !== 1) {
+    return false
+  }
+  const [holder] = incumbent.holders
+  return holder.matchesRelayArgv && holder.childCount === 0
+}
+
+export function describeRelayEndpointIncumbent(incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent): string {
+  const holders = incumbent.holders
+    .map((holder) => `${holder.pid}(children=${holder.childCount ?? 'unknown'})`)
+    .join(',')
+  return (
+    `${incumbent.sockPath} verdict=${incumbent.verdict} evidence=${incumbent.evidence} ` +
+    `holders=${incumbent.holdersEnumerable ? holders || 'none' : 'unenumerable'}`
+  )
+}
+
+/**
+ * Thrown instead of orphaning: a live relay owns the endpoint and refused us, so the path is
+ * not ours to rebind. Terminal for this attempt — the user resolves it with Reset Relay,
+ * which signals the incumbent deliberately and with consent.
+ */
+export class RelayEndpointHeldError extends Error {
+  readonly name = 'RelayEndpointHeldError'
+  constructor(readonly incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent) {
+    super(
+      `A live relay still owns ${incumbent.sockPath} and refused this connection ` +
+        `(${describeRelayEndpointIncumbent(incumbent)}). Orca will not replace it, because ` +
+        'unlinking its socket would strand its terminals. Use Reset Relay for this host to ' +
+        'stop it, then reconnect.'
+    )
+  }
+}
+
+export function isRelayEndpointHeldError(err: unknown): err is RelayEndpointHeldError {
+  return err instanceof RelayEndpointHeldError
+}
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover.test.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..687d633b92b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,159 @@
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+
+const execCommand = vi.fn()
+vi.mock('./ssh-relay-deploy-helpers', () => ({
+  execCommand: (...args: unknown[]) => execCommand(...args),
+  isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination: (error: unknown) =>
+    (error as { sshChannelCloseConfirmed?: boolean } | null)?.sshChannelCloseConfirmed === false
+}))
+
+import { isRelayEndpointHeldError } from './ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent'
+import {
+  interpretRelayHuskReapOutput,
+  reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand,
+  resolveRelayEndpointBeforeRelaunch
+} from './ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover'
+import { RelayVersionMismatchError } from './ssh-relay-version-mismatch-error'
+import type { SshConnection } from './ssh-connection'
+import { getRemoteHostPlatform } from './ssh-remote-platform'
+
+const SOCK = '/home/u/.orca-remote/relay-0.1.0+aaaa/relay-deadbeef.sock'
+const HOST = getRemoteHostPlatform('linux-x64')
+const CONN = {} as SshConnection
+
+function probe(lines: string[]): string {
+  return ['ORCA-INCUMBENT-BEGIN', ...lines, 'ORCA-INCUMBENT-END'].join('\n')
+}
+
+function issuedCommands(): string[] {
+  return execCommand.mock.calls.map((call) => String(call[1]))
+}
+
+function resolve(reconnectError: unknown = new Error('connect failed')): Promise<unknown> {
+  return resolveRelayEndpointBeforeRelaunch(CONN, HOST, '/usr/bin/node', SOCK, reconnectError)
+}
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  execCommand.mockReset()
+  vi.spyOn(console, 'warn').mockImplementation(() => {})
+  vi.spyOn(console, 'log').mockImplementation(() => {})
+})
+
+describe('incumbent alive and refusing', () => {
+  it('refuses to rebind a live relay holding PTYs, and signals nothing', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockResolvedValueOnce(
+      probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=3669803 yes 13'])
+    )
+    await expect(resolve()).rejects.toSatisfy(isRelayEndpointHeldError)
+    // The whole point of #8585: the incumbent's socket must survive so it is not orphaned.
+    expect(issuedCommands().some((command) => /\brm -f\b/.test(command))).toBe(false)
+    expect(issuedCommands().some((command) => /\bkill\b/.test(command))).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('names the incumbent pid and the Reset Relay escape hatch in the error', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockResolvedValue(
+      probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=3669803 yes 13'])
+    )
+    await expect(resolve()).rejects.toThrow(/3669803\(children=13\)/)
+    await expect(resolve()).rejects.toThrow(/Reset Relay/)
+  })
+
+  it('treats a version mismatch as live even where holders cannot be enumerated', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockResolvedValue(
+      probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=unknown', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable'])
+    )
+    const mismatch = new RelayVersionMismatchError('0.1.0+new', '0.1.0+old', '')
+    await expect(resolve(mismatch)).rejects.toSatisfy(isRelayEndpointHeldError)
+    expect(issuedCommands().some((command) => /\brm -f\b/.test(command))).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('reaps a live relay only when it provably holds nothing, and confirms it is gone', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=80583 yes 0'])
+      )
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce('GONE\n')
+    await expect(resolve()).resolves.toMatchObject({ verdict: 'live' })
+    expect(issuedCommands()[1]).toContain('kill -TERM "$pid"')
+  })
+
+  it('does not launch over an empty relay whose death could not be confirmed', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=80583 yes 0'])
+      )
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce('LIVE\n')
+    await expect(resolve()).rejects.toSatisfy(isRelayEndpointHeldError)
+  })
+
+  it('does not launch over a relay the host refused to signal on its own re-check', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=80583 yes 0'])
+      )
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce('BUSY\n')
+    await expect(resolve()).rejects.toSatisfy(isRelayEndpointHeldError)
+  })
+})
+
+describe('incumbent genuinely gone', () => {
+  it('permits the relaunch without unlinking anything itself', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockResolvedValueOnce(
+      probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof'])
+    )
+    await expect(resolve()).resolves.toMatchObject({ verdict: 'exited', evidence: 'no-holder' })
+    // The daemon unlinks under an identity check that is atomic with its bind; the client
+    // cannot be, which is what created the orphan in the first place.
+    expect(issuedCommands().some((command) => /\brm -f\b/.test(command))).toBe(false)
+  })
+})
+
+describe('incumbent unverifiable', () => {
+  it('permits the relaunch but never claims the incumbent exited', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockResolvedValueOnce(
+      probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=unknown', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable'])
+    )
+    await expect(resolve()).resolves.toMatchObject({ verdict: 'unverifiable' })
+    expect(issuedCommands()).toHaveLength(1)
+  })
+
+  it('stays unverifiable when the probe command itself fails', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error('exec timeout'))
+    await expect(resolve()).resolves.toMatchObject({ verdict: 'unverifiable' })
+  })
+})
+
+describe('reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand', () => {
+  it('re-verifies argv and emptiness on the host immediately before signalling', () => {
+    const command = reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(4242, SOCK)
+    expect(command.indexOf('MISMATCH')).toBeLessThan(command.indexOf('kill -TERM'))
+    expect(command.indexOf('BUSY')).toBeLessThan(command.indexOf('kill -TERM'))
+  })
+
+  it('sends SIGTERM only, so the relay runs its own socket cleanup', () => {
+    const command = reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(4242, SOCK)
+    expect(command).toContain('kill -TERM')
+    expect(command).not.toContain('kill -KILL')
+    expect(command).not.toContain('-9')
+  })
+
+  it('aborts without signalling when the host cannot count children', () => {
+    expect(reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(4242, SOCK)).toContain(
+      "command -v pgrep >/dev/null 2>&1 || { printf 'BUSY\\n'; exit 0; }"
+    )
+  })
+})
+
+describe('interpretRelayHuskReapOutput', () => {
+  it('claims reaped only for a post-signal liveness check that failed', () => {
+    expect(interpretRelayHuskReapOutput('GONE\n')).toBe('reaped')
+    expect(interpretRelayHuskReapOutput('LIVE\n')).toBe('reap-unconfirmed')
+    expect(interpretRelayHuskReapOutput('')).toBe('reap-unconfirmed')
+    expect(interpretRelayHuskReapOutput('unexpected noise')).toBe('reap-unconfirmed')
+  })
+
+  it('reports a host-side refusal as retained rather than as a failed kill', () => {
+    expect(interpretRelayHuskReapOutput('MISMATCH\n')).toBe('retained-live-work')
+    expect(interpretRelayHuskReapOutput('BUSY\n')).toBe('retained-live-work')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..f104aab5256
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,133 @@
+/**
+ * Deciding whether a relay socket path is ours to take, and acting on the answer.
+ *
+ * The only destructive action available here is a SIGTERM to a relay that has been proven —
+ * by argv, by socket-holder enumeration, and by a zero child count re-checked on the host
+ * immediately before the signal — to hold nothing at all. Everything else is left running.
+ * Per docs/reference/ssh-execution-boundary.md, a relay we merely failed to reach is
+ * `unverifiable`, and `unverifiable` never authorizes a kill or a rebind.
+ */
+import type { SshConnection } from './ssh-connection'
+import { shellEscape } from './ssh-connection-utils'
+import { execCommand, isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination } from './ssh-relay-deploy-helpers'
+import {
+  describeRelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  isReapableRelayHusk,
+  mayLaunchOverRelayEndpoint,
+  probeRelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  RelayEndpointHeldError,
+  withHandshakeRefusalEvidence,
+  type RelayEndpointIncumbent
+} from './ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent'
+import { isRelayVersionMismatchError } from './ssh-relay-version-mismatch-error'
+import type { RemoteHostPlatform } from './ssh-remote-platform'
+
+/** `reaped` is only reachable from a post-signal `kill -0` that failed. Nothing else claims it. */
+export type RelayHuskReapResult = 'reaped' | 'reap-unconfirmed' | 'retained-live-work'
+
+const REAP_CONFIRM_ATTEMPTS = 15
+
+/**
+ * Signal one relay, re-verifying identity and emptiness inside the same command.
+ *
+ * The re-verification is not belt-and-braces: a client can attach and spawn a PTY between the
+ * probe and the signal, and pids are reused. `MISMATCH`/`BUSY` abort without signalling.
+ */
+export function reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(pid: number, sockPath: string): string {
+  return [
+    `pid=${shellEscape(String(pid))}`,
+    `sock=${shellEscape(sockPath)}`,
+    'args=$(ps -o args= -p "$pid" 2>/dev/null | tr "\\n" " ")',
+    'case "$args" in *relay.js*"$sock"*) ;; *) printf \'MISMATCH\\n\'; exit 0 ;; esac',
+    "command -v pgrep >/dev/null 2>&1 || { printf 'BUSY\\n'; exit 0; }",
+    'kids=$(pgrep -P "$pid" 2>/dev/null | grep -c .)',
+    '[ "$kids" = "0" ] || { printf \'BUSY\\n\'; exit 0; }',
+    // SIGTERM only: the relay's own handler disposes and unlinks. SIGKILL would leave the
+    // socket inode behind and skip that shutdown path for no gain on an empty daemon.
+    'kill -TERM "$pid" 2>/dev/null || true',
+    'i=0',
+    `while [ $i -lt ${REAP_CONFIRM_ATTEMPTS} ]; do`,
+    '  kill -0 "$pid" 2>/dev/null || { printf \'GONE\\n\'; exit 0; }',
+    '  sleep 0.2',
+    '  i=$((i+1))',
+    'done',
+    "printf 'LIVE\\n'"
+  ].join('\n')
+}
+
+export function interpretRelayHuskReapOutput(output: string): RelayHuskReapResult {
+  const state = output.trim().split('\n').pop()?.trim()
+  if (state === 'GONE') {
+    return 'reaped'
+  }
+  // The host refused on its own re-check: what is there is not the empty relay we probed, so
+  // nothing was signalled and nothing is claimed about it.
+  if (state === 'MISMATCH' || state === 'BUSY') {
+    return 'retained-live-work'
+  }
+  return 'reap-unconfirmed'
+}
+
+export async function reapEmptyRelayHusk(
+  conn: SshConnection,
+  incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  options?: { signal?: AbortSignal }
+): Promise<RelayHuskReapResult> {
+  const holder = incumbent.holders[0]
+  if (!holder) {
+    return 'retained-live-work'
+  }
+  try {
+    const output = await execCommand(
+      conn,
+      reapEmptyRelayHuskCommand(holder.pid, incumbent.sockPath),
+      { wrapCommand: true, signal: options?.signal }
+    )
+    return interpretRelayHuskReapOutput(output)
+  } catch (err) {
+    if (isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination(err)) {
+      throw err
+    }
+    return 'reap-unconfirmed'
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Called when `--connect` to an existing socket failed and the caller is about to launch a
+ * replacement at the same path. Resolves to nothing when the launch may proceed; throws
+ * `RelayEndpointHeldError` when a live relay owns the path and holds work.
+ *
+ * `unverifiable` deliberately permits the launch: the daemon, not the client, performs the
+ * takeover. `RelaySocketOwnership.listen` re-probes on EADDRINUSE, refuses a path that accepts
+ * connections, and only unlinks an inode whose identity is unchanged — a check that is atomic
+ * with the bind, which a client-side `rm -f` can never be.
+ */
+export async function resolveRelayEndpointBeforeRelaunch(
+  conn: SshConnection,
+  hostPlatform: RemoteHostPlatform,
+  nodePath: string,
+  sockPath: string,
+  reconnectError: unknown,
+  options?: { signal?: AbortSignal }
+): Promise<RelayEndpointIncumbent> {
+  const probed = await probeRelayEndpointIncumbent(conn, hostPlatform, nodePath, sockPath, options)
+  // A daemon that answered the handshake with its own version is live by positive host
+  // evidence, even where nothing can enumerate socket holders.
+  const incumbent = isRelayVersionMismatchError(reconnectError)
+    ? withHandshakeRefusalEvidence(probed)
+    : probed
+  console.warn(`[ssh-relay] Relay endpoint incumbent: ${describeRelayEndpointIncumbent(incumbent)}`)
+
+  if (mayLaunchOverRelayEndpoint(incumbent)) {
+    return incumbent
+  }
+  if (!isReapableRelayHusk(incumbent)) {
+    throw new RelayEndpointHeldError(incumbent)
+  }
+  const result = await reapEmptyRelayHusk(conn, incumbent, options)
+  if (result !== 'reaped') {
+    throw new RelayEndpointHeldError(incumbent)
+  }
+  console.log(`[ssh-relay] Reaped empty relay husk holding ${sockPath}`)
+  return incumbent
+}
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-session.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-session.ts
index bdc7c4370f2..ed5ae3f9cfd 100644
--- a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-session.ts
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-session.ts
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import type { BrowserWindow } from 'electron'
 import { deployAndLaunchRelay } from './ssh-relay-deploy'
 import { execCommand } from './ssh-relay-deploy-helpers'
 import { isRelayVersionMismatchError } from './ssh-relay-version-mismatch-error'
+import { isRelayEndpointHeldError } from './ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent'
 import { replayPendingSshPtyKills } from './ssh-pending-pty-kill-replay'
 import { SshChannelMultiplexer } from './ssh-channel-multiplexer'
 import { SshPtyProvider } from '../providers/ssh-pty-provider'
@@ -629,7 +630,13 @@ export class SshRelaySession {
       }
       // Why: terminal on first connect — a deployed binary against a still-running legacy daemon, or a
       // claim another connection holds. Notify the callback but still rethrow.
-      if (isRelayVersionMismatchError(err) || isSshOwnerAdmissionBlockedError(err)) {
+      // RelayEndpointHeldError is terminal for the same reason: a live incumbent owns the
+      // socket path, and backoff cannot make it hand it over. The user resolves it.
+      if (
+        isRelayVersionMismatchError(err) ||
+        isRelayEndpointHeldError(err) ||
+        isSshOwnerAdmissionBlockedError(err)
+      ) {
         console.warn(
           `[ssh-relay-session] Terminal relay error on initial connect for ${this.targetId}: ${err.message}`
         )
@@ -783,7 +790,13 @@ export class SshRelaySession {
       }
       // Why terminal: neither a version mismatch nor a blocked owner claim is reconcilable by backoff
       // retry, so fire the typed callback and drop out of 'reconnecting'.
-      if (isRelayVersionMismatchError(err) || isSshOwnerAdmissionBlockedError(err)) {
+      // RelayEndpointHeldError is terminal for the same reason: a live incumbent owns the
+      // socket path, and backoff cannot make it hand it over. The user resolves it.
+      if (
+        isRelayVersionMismatchError(err) ||
+        isRelayEndpointHeldError(err) ||
+        isSshOwnerAdmissionBlockedError(err)
+      ) {
         console.warn(
           `[ssh-relay-session] Terminal relay error for ${this.targetId}: ${err.message}`
         )
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints.test.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..874d9aae3fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,164 @@
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+
+const execCommand = vi.fn()
+vi.mock('./ssh-relay-deploy-helpers', () => ({
+  execCommand: (...args: unknown[]) => execCommand(...args),
+  isUnconfirmedSshCommandTermination: (error: unknown) =>
+    (error as { sshChannelCloseConfirmed?: boolean } | null)?.sshChannelCloseConfirmed === false
+}))
+
+import { parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe } from './ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent'
+import {
+  classifySupersededRelay,
+  supersededRelayEndpointListCommand,
+  sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints
+} from './ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints'
+import type { SshConnection } from './ssh-connection'
+import { getRemoteHostPlatform } from './ssh-remote-platform'
+
+const HOME = '/home/u'
+const SOCK_NAME = 'relay-deadbeef.sock'
+const CURRENT_DIR = `${HOME}/.orca-remote/relay-0.1.0+bd3ec370d21d`
+const OLD_SOCK = `${HOME}/.orca-remote/relay-0.1.0+7175e0a40ea7/${SOCK_NAME}`
+const HOST = getRemoteHostPlatform('linux-x64')
+const WINDOWS_HOST = getRemoteHostPlatform('win32-x64')
+const CONN = {} as SshConnection
+
+const SWEEP = {
+  remoteHome: HOME,
+  currentRelayDir: CURRENT_DIR,
+  sockName: SOCK_NAME,
+  nodePath: '/usr/bin/node'
+}
+
+function probe(lines: string[]): string {
+  return ['ORCA-INCUMBENT-BEGIN', ...lines, 'ORCA-INCUMBENT-END'].join('\n')
+}
+
+function incumbent(lines: string[]): ReturnType<typeof parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe> {
+  return parseRelayEndpointIncumbentProbe(OLD_SOCK, probe(lines))
+}
+
+function issuedCommands(): string[] {
+  return execCommand.mock.calls.map((call) => String(call[1]))
+}
+
+beforeEach(() => {
+  execCommand.mockReset()
+  vi.spyOn(console, 'warn').mockImplementation(() => {})
+  vi.spyOn(console, 'log').mockImplementation(() => {})
+})
+
+describe('supersededRelayEndpointListCommand', () => {
+  it('globs sibling version dirs for this target socket and skips the current one', () => {
+    const command = supersededRelayEndpointListCommand(SWEEP)
+    expect(command).toContain('"$base"/relay-*/"$sock_name"')
+    expect(command).toContain('[ "$dir" = "$current" ] && continue')
+    expect(command).toContain(SOCK_NAME)
+    expect(command).toContain(CURRENT_DIR)
+  })
+})
+
+describe('classifySupersededRelay', () => {
+  it('retains a live relay that still owns PTYs', () => {
+    expect(
+      classifySupersededRelay(
+        incumbent([
+          'PRESENT=yes',
+          'LISTEN=accepted',
+          'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof',
+          'HOLDER=3669803 yes 13'
+        ])
+      )
+    ).toBe('retained-live-work')
+  })
+
+  it('nominates only a proven empty relay for reaping', () => {
+    expect(
+      classifySupersededRelay(
+        incumbent(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=80583 yes 0'])
+      )
+    ).toBe('reap-candidate')
+  })
+
+  it('removes only a socket proven to have no holder', () => {
+    expect(
+      classifySupersededRelay(incumbent(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof']))
+    ).toBe('stale-endpoint-removed')
+  })
+
+  it('does nothing at all for an unverifiable endpoint', () => {
+    expect(
+      classifySupersededRelay(
+        incumbent(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=unknown', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable'])
+      )
+    ).toBe('unverifiable')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints', () => {
+  it('leaves an upgrade-orphaned relay that still owns terminals running, untouched', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(`${OLD_SOCK}\n`)
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=3669803 yes 13'])
+      )
+    const findings = await sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(CONN, HOST, SWEEP)
+    expect(findings).toHaveLength(1)
+    expect(findings[0]).toMatchObject({ sockPath: OLD_SOCK, outcome: 'retained-live-work' })
+    expect(issuedCommands().some((command) => /\bkill\b/.test(command))).toBe(false)
+    expect(issuedCommands().some((command) => /\brm -f\b/.test(command))).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  it('reaps the empty husk an upgrade leaves behind, once the host confirms it is gone', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(`${OLD_SOCK}\n`)
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=80583 yes 0'])
+      )
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce('GONE\n')
+    const findings = await sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(CONN, HOST, SWEEP)
+    expect(findings[0].outcome).toBe('reaped')
+    expect(issuedCommands()[2]).toContain('kill -TERM "$pid"')
+  })
+
+  it('reports reap-unconfirmed rather than reaped when the pid is still there', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(`${OLD_SOCK}\n`)
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=accepted', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof', 'HOLDER=80583 yes 0'])
+      )
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce('LIVE\n')
+    const findings = await sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(CONN, HOST, SWEEP)
+    expect(findings[0].outcome).toBe('reap-unconfirmed')
+  })
+
+  it('unlinks an orphaned socket only once nothing holds it, unpinning the dir for GC', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(`${OLD_SOCK}\n`)
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=refused', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=lsof']))
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce('')
+    const findings = await sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(CONN, HOST, SWEEP)
+    expect(findings[0].outcome).toBe('stale-endpoint-removed')
+    expect(issuedCommands()[2]).toBe(`rm -f '${OLD_SOCK}'`)
+  })
+
+  it('touches nothing on a host it cannot interrogate', async () => {
+    execCommand
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(`${OLD_SOCK}\n`)
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(probe(['PRESENT=yes', 'LISTEN=unknown', 'HOLDERS_SOURCE=unavailable']))
+    const findings = await sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(CONN, HOST, SWEEP)
+    expect(findings[0].outcome).toBe('unverifiable')
+    expect(issuedCommands()).toHaveLength(2)
+  })
+
+  it('is a no-op when the listing fails, and never guesses at what was there', async () => {
+    execCommand.mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error('exec failed'))
+    await expect(sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(CONN, HOST, SWEEP)).resolves.toEqual([])
+  })
+
+  it('does not run against Windows hosts, whose endpoints are named pipes', async () => {
+    await expect(sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(CONN, WINDOWS_HOST, SWEEP)).resolves.toEqual([])
+    expect(execCommand).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+  })
+})
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..1a9554f7b82
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-superseded-endpoints.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,178 @@
+/**
+ * Relays this target left behind at a *different* version directory.
+ *
+ * Every relay build installs to `~/.orca-remote/relay-<fullVersion>/` and binds its socket
+ * inside it, so the socket path moves on every app update even though the filename component
+ * is stable. After an update the new client binds a path the previous relay's PTYs were never
+ * associated with, and the previous relay is never contacted again (#13614, #13852). Nothing
+ * signals it and nothing reclaims it: with `--grace-time 0` it keeps its shells and agents
+ * alive forever.
+ *
+ * This sweep makes that population *visible and deliberate* rather than silent. It does not
+ * make it recoverable — the daemon handshake compares the build's content hash exactly
+ * (`relay-handshake.ts`), so a new client cannot speak to an old daemon at all. See the report
+ * on this change for what a real cross-version handoff would require.
+ *
+ * The one thing it will terminate is a relay that provably holds nothing. Everything else is
+ * retained, including everything it merely failed to reach.
+ */
+import type { SshConnection } from './ssh-connection'
+import { shellEscape } from './ssh-connection-utils'
+import { RELAY_REMOTE_DIR } from './relay-protocol'
+import { execCommand } from './ssh-relay-deploy-helpers'
+import {
+  describeRelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  isReapableRelayHusk,
+  probeRelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  type RelayEndpointIncumbent
+} from './ssh-relay-endpoint-incumbent'
+import { reapEmptyRelayHusk } from './ssh-relay-endpoint-takeover'
+import { isWindowsRemoteHost, type RemoteHostPlatform } from './ssh-remote-platform'
+
+/**
+ * `reaped` is the only outcome that claims a process ended, and it is only reachable from a
+ * post-signal `kill -0` that failed. A signal we sent but could not confirm is
+ * `reap-unconfirmed`, which is `unverifiable` — not `exited` by another name.
+ */
+export type SupersededRelayOutcome =
+  | 'reaped'
+  | 'reap-unconfirmed'
+  | 'retained-live-work'
+  | 'stale-endpoint-removed'
+  | 'unverifiable'
+
+export type SupersededRelayFinding = {
+  sockPath: string
+  outcome: SupersededRelayOutcome
+  incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent
+}
+
+export type SupersededRelaySweepOptions = {
+  remoteHome: string
+  /** Absolute path of the version directory this client just launched into; never swept. */
+  currentRelayDir: string
+  /** Stable per-target socket filename, from `relaySocketNameForInstanceId`. */
+  sockName: string
+  nodePath: string
+  signal?: AbortSignal
+}
+
+const MAX_SWEPT_ENDPOINTS = 32
+
+export function supersededRelayEndpointListCommand(options: {
+  remoteHome: string
+  currentRelayDir: string
+  sockName: string
+}): string {
+  return [
+    `base=${shellEscape(`${options.remoteHome}/${RELAY_REMOTE_DIR}`)}`,
+    `sock_name=${shellEscape(options.sockName)}`,
+    `current=${shellEscape(options.currentRelayDir)}`,
+    'for sock in "$base"/relay-*/"$sock_name"; do',
+    '  [ -S "$sock" ] || continue',
+    '  dir=${sock%/*}',
+    '  [ "$dir" = "$current" ] && continue',
+    '  printf \'%s\\n\' "$sock"',
+    'done'
+  ].join('\n')
+}
+
+/** Remove a socket inode proven to have no holder, so version-dir GC can reclaim the tree. */
+export function removeStaleRelayEndpointCommand(sockPath: string): string {
+  return `rm -f ${shellEscape(sockPath)}`
+}
+
+export function classifySupersededRelay(
+  incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent
+): Exclude<SupersededRelayOutcome, 'reaped' | 'reap-unconfirmed'> | 'reap-candidate' {
+  if (incumbent.verdict === 'exited') {
+    return incumbent.socketPresent ? 'stale-endpoint-removed' : 'unverifiable'
+  }
+  if (incumbent.verdict !== 'live') {
+    return 'unverifiable'
+  }
+  return isReapableRelayHusk(incumbent) ? 'reap-candidate' : 'retained-live-work'
+}
+
+export async function sweepSupersededRelayEndpoints(
+  conn: SshConnection,
+  hostPlatform: RemoteHostPlatform,
+  options: SupersededRelaySweepOptions
+): Promise<SupersededRelayFinding[]> {
+  if (isWindowsRemoteHost(hostPlatform)) {
+    return []
+  }
+  let listing: string
+  try {
+    listing = await execCommand(conn, supersededRelayEndpointListCommand(options), {
+      wrapCommand: true,
+      signal: options.signal
+    })
+  } catch {
+    return []
+  }
+  const sockPaths = listing
+    .split('\n')
+    .map((line) => line.trim())
+    .filter((line) => line.startsWith('/'))
+    .slice(0, MAX_SWEPT_ENDPOINTS)
+
+  const findings: SupersededRelayFinding[] = []
+  for (const sockPath of sockPaths) {
+    options.signal?.throwIfAborted()
+    const incumbent = await probeRelayEndpointIncumbent(
+      conn,
+      hostPlatform,
+      options.nodePath,
+      sockPath,
+      { signal: options.signal }
+    )
+    findings.push({
+      sockPath,
+      outcome: await applySupersededRelayDecision(conn, incumbent, options),
+      incumbent
+    })
+  }
+  logSupersededRelayFindings(findings)
+  return findings
+}
+
+async function applySupersededRelayDecision(
+  conn: SshConnection,
+  incumbent: RelayEndpointIncumbent,
+  options: SupersededRelaySweepOptions
+): Promise<SupersededRelayOutcome> {
+  const decision = classifySupersededRelay(incumbent)
+  if (decision === 'stale-endpoint-removed') {
+    try {
+      await execCommand(conn, removeStaleRelayEndpointCommand(incumbent.sockPath), {
+        wrapCommand: true,
+        signal: options.signal
+      })
+      return 'stale-endpoint-removed'
+    } catch {
+      return 'unverifiable'
+    }
+  }
+  if (decision !== 'reap-candidate') {
+    return decision
+  }
+  return reapEmptyRelayHusk(conn, incumbent, { signal: options.signal })
+}
+
+function logSupersededRelayFindings(findings: SupersededRelayFinding[]): void {
+  for (const finding of findings) {
+    const detail = describeRelayEndpointIncumbent(finding.incumbent)
+    if (finding.outcome === 'retained-live-work') {
+      console.warn(
+        `[ssh-relay] Superseded relay retained (holds live work; not signalled): ${detail}`
+      )
+      continue
+    }
+    if (finding.outcome === 'unverifiable' || finding.outcome === 'reap-unconfirmed') {
+      console.warn(`[ssh-relay] Superseded relay ${finding.outcome}: ${detail}`)
+      continue
+    }
+    console.log(`[ssh-relay] Superseded relay ${finding.outcome}: ${detail}`)
+  }
+}