After executing rm /tmp/b.sock , the file b.sock will be deleted normally without affecting the usability of the original file a.sock. The expected behavior of ES for this issue should be that message->event.unlink.target->path == "/tmp/b.sock" instead of /tmp/a.sock . This issue is 100% reproducible, so you can test it on your side. In addition, I have not filed any bug reports on this issue elsewhere; this is the only place where I am submitting it.