diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-launch-ownership.integration.test.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-launch-ownership.integration.test.ts
index 4f6afcf4661..6eeb0981ff8 100644
--- a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-launch-ownership.integration.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-launch-ownership.integration.test.ts
@@ -21,7 +21,9 @@ import { launchRelay } from './ssh-relay-deploy'
 import {
   LiveRelayFixture,
   createLocalShellConnection,
+  delay,
   isProcessAlive,
+  killProcessTree,
   relayBundleDirForHost
 } from './ssh-relay-live-daemon-harness'
 import { isRelaySocketOwnerLiveError } from './ssh-relay-socket-owner'
@@ -39,6 +41,10 @@ if (process.env.ORCA_REQUIRE_RELAY_BUNDLE === '1' && !BUNDLE_DIR) {
 
 type RelayStatus = { pid: number; ptys: { active: number } }
 
+const hostPlatform = getRemoteHostPlatform(
+  process.platform === 'darwin' ? 'darwin-arm64' : 'linux-x64'
+)
+
 describe.skipIf(!BUNDLE_DIR || process.platform === 'win32')('launchRelay socket ownership', () => {
   let fixture: LiveRelayFixture | null = null
   let root: string | null = null
@@ -74,9 +80,6 @@ describe.skipIf(!BUNDLE_DIR || process.platform === 'win32')('launchRelay socket
     // that rewrote the file after the daemon had already claimed the socket.
     live.rotateCredential()
 
-    const hostPlatform = getRemoteHostPlatform(
-      process.platform === 'darwin' ? 'darwin-arm64' : 'linux-x64'
-    )
     const error = await launchRelay(
       createLocalShellConnection(),
       root,
@@ -92,4 +95,42 @@ describe.skipIf(!BUNDLE_DIR || process.platform === 'win32')('launchRelay socket
     expect(isProcessAlive(incumbent.pid)).toBe(true)
     expect(live.logMark('replacement')).toBe(0)
   })
+
+  // Why this pairs with the test above: reset no longer unlinks the socket it stopped, so the
+  // inode a killed relay leaves behind has to be the deploy path's problem — and it is.
+  it('takes over the socket a killed relay left behind', async () => {
+    root = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'orca-rel-'))
+    const live = new LiveRelayFixture(root, BUNDLE_DIR!, REPO_ROOT, TARGET_ID)
+    fixture = live
+    live.launchDaemon('incumbent')
+    expect(await live.waitForSocket()).toBe(true)
+
+    const bridge = live.openBridge()
+    await bridge.waitForSentinel()
+    const incumbent = await bridge.request<RelayStatus>('relay.status')
+    bridge.close()
+
+    // A relay stopped by reset (or a crash) leaves its socket inode behind.
+    killProcessTree(incumbent.pid)
+    for (let attempt = 0; attempt < 50 && isProcessAlive(incumbent.pid); attempt++) {
+      await delay(100)
+    }
+    expect(existsSync(live.sockPath)).toBe(true)
+
+    const launched = await launchRelay(
+      createLocalShellConnection(),
+      root,
+      hostPlatform,
+      process.execPath,
+      0,
+      TARGET_ID
+    )
+
+    expect(launched.sockPath).toBe(live.sockPath)
+    const fresh = live.openBridge()
+    await fresh.waitForSentinel()
+    const status = await fresh.request<RelayStatus>('relay.status')
+    expect(status.pid).not.toBe(incumbent.pid)
+    fresh.close()
+  })
 })
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.test.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.test.ts
index 7bdd5ca550b..62bc07fd3b8 100644
--- a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.test.ts
@@ -187,7 +187,9 @@ describe('forceStopRelayForTarget', () => {
     expect(command).toContain('lsof -t -a -U "$1"')
     expect(command).toContain('pgrep -f "$sock_name"')
     expect(command).toContain('/proc/net/unix')
-    expect(command).toContain('rm -f "$sock"')
+    // Why not: a stopped relay unlinks its own socket, and one that was killed leaves an
+    // inode the next deploy releases under its identity guard (STA-1756).
+    expect(command).not.toContain('rm -f')
   })
 
   it.skipIf(process.platform === 'win32')(
@@ -198,7 +200,6 @@ describe('forceStopRelayForTarget', () => {
       expect(result.killCalls.join(' ')).toContain('-TERM')
       expect(result.killCalls.join(' ')).not.toContain(UNRELATED_PID)
       expect(result.ownerAlive).toBe(false)
-      expect(result.socketExists).toBe(false)
       expect(result.error).toBeNull()
     }
   )
@@ -210,7 +211,6 @@ describe('forceStopRelayForTarget', () => {
 
       expect(result.pgrepCalls.length).toBeGreaterThan(0)
       expect(result.ownerAlive).toBe(false)
-      expect(result.socketExists).toBe(false)
       expect(result.error).toBeNull()
     }
   )
diff --git a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.ts b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.ts
index e04d50336d8..a0410b863eb 100644
--- a/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.ts
+++ b/src/main/ssh/ssh-relay-reset.ts
@@ -10,6 +10,15 @@ import { relaySocketNameForInstanceId } from './ssh-relay-instance-id'
 const RESET_NO_OWNER_PROOF_MARKER = 'ORCA-RELAY-RESET-NO-OWNER-PROOF'
 const RESET_OWNER_SURVIVED_MARKER = 'ORCA-RELAY-RESET-OWNER-SURVIVED'
 
+/**
+ * Stop the relay owning this target's socket.
+ *
+ * Why it no longer removes the socket: a relay that stops cleanly unlinks its own path, and
+ * one that had to be killed leaves an inode the next deploy releases under its identity
+ * guard. Removing it here would need the same guard and would still race a relay binding the
+ * path between the check and the unlink — for no gain, since the leftover inode blocks
+ * nothing.
+ */
 export async function forceStopRelayForTarget(
   conn: SshConnection,
   relayInstanceId: string
@@ -32,7 +41,7 @@ export async function forceStopRelayForTarget(
     '  fi',
     '}',
     // Why an inventory rather than "no pid found": a lookup that returned nothing may
-    // simply have been unable to look, and reset must not read that silence as absence.
+    // simply have been unable to look, and reset must not read that silence as a stop.
     // 0 = a process holds the socket, 1 = an inventory ran and none does, 2 = none ran.
     'socket_listed() {',
     '  if [ -r /proc/net/unix ]; then',
@@ -46,27 +55,25 @@ export async function forceStopRelayForTarget(
     'if [ -d "$base" ]; then',
     '  for sock in "$base"/relay-*/"$sock_name" "$base"/"$sock_name"; do',
     '    [ -S "$sock" ] || continue',
+    '    signalled=no',
     '    find_holder "$sock"',
     '    if [ -n "$holder" ]; then',
+    '      signalled=yes',
     '      kill -TERM $holder 2>/dev/null || true',
     '      sleep 0.2',
     '      kill -KILL $holder 2>/dev/null || true',
     '      sleep 0.2',
     '    fi',
     // Why re-check both: a refused kill (permissions, a wedged process) leaves the owner
-    // listening, and removing its socket then hides it instead of stopping it.
+    // running, and reporting success then tells the user a relay was stopped that was not.
     '    socket_listed "$sock"',
     '    listed=$?',
     '    find_holder "$sock"',
-    '    if [ "$listed" = 2 ]; then',
-    `      echo ${RESET_NO_OWNER_PROOF_MARKER}`,
-    '      continue',
-    '    fi',
     '    if [ "$listed" = 0 ] || [ -n "$holder" ]; then',
     `      echo ${RESET_OWNER_SURVIVED_MARKER}`,
-    '      continue',
+    '    elif [ "$listed" = 2 ] && [ "$signalled" = no ]; then',
+    `      echo ${RESET_NO_OWNER_PROOF_MARKER}`,
     '    fi',
-    '    rm -f "$sock"',
     '  done',
     'fi'
   ].join('\n')
@@ -74,14 +81,14 @@ export async function forceStopRelayForTarget(
   const output = await execCommand(conn, script)
   if (output.includes(RESET_OWNER_SURVIVED_MARKER)) {
     throw new Error(
-      'The remote relay is still running after the reset signal, so its socket was left in ' +
-        'place rather than stranding it. Stop the relay process on the host, then retry.'
+      'The remote relay is still running after the reset signal. Stop the relay process on ' +
+        'the host, then retry.'
     )
   }
   if (output.includes(RESET_NO_OWNER_PROOF_MARKER)) {
     throw new Error(
       'This host offers no way to see which process owns the relay socket (no /proc/net/unix ' +
-        'and no lsof), so it was left in place. Stop the relay process on the host, then retry.'
+        'and no lsof), so nothing was stopped. Stop the relay process on the host, then retry.'
     )
   }
 }