diff --git a/src/ckpool.c b/src/ckpool.c
index d3516b1a..70725e08 100644
--- a/src/ckpool.c
+++ b/src/ckpool.c
@@ -202,6 +202,86 @@ bool ckmsgq_empty(ckmsgq_t *ckmsgq)
 	return ret;
 }
 
+static void childsighandler(const int sig);
+
+/* Create a standalone thread that queues received unix messages for a proc
+ * instance and adds them to linked list of received messages with their
+ * associated receive socket, then signal the associated rmsg_cond for the
+ * process to know we have more queued messages. The unix_msg_t ram must be
+ * freed by the code that removes the entry from the list. */
+static void *unix_receiver(void *arg)
+{
+	proc_instance_t *pi = (proc_instance_t *)arg;
+	int rsockd = pi->us.sockd, sockd;
+	char qname[16];
+
+	sprintf(qname, "%cunixrq", pi->processname[0]);
+	rename_proc(qname);
+	pthread_detach(pthread_self());
+
+	while (42) {
+		unix_msg_t *umsg;
+		char *buf;
+
+		sockd = accept(rsockd, NULL, NULL);
+		if (unlikely(sockd < 0)) {
+			LOGEMERG("Failed to accept on %s socket, exiting", qname);
+			childsighandler(15);
+			break;
+		}
+		buf = recv_unix_msg(sockd);
+		if (unlikely(!buf)) {
+			Close(sockd);
+			LOGWARNING("Failed to get message on %s socket", qname);
+			continue;
+		}
+		umsg = ckalloc(sizeof(unix_msg_t));
+		umsg->sockd = sockd;
+		umsg->buf = buf;
+
+		mutex_lock(&pi->rmsg_lock);
+		DL_APPEND(pi->unix_msgs, umsg);
+		pthread_cond_signal(&pi->rmsg_cond);
+		mutex_unlock(&pi->rmsg_lock);
+	}
+
+	return NULL;
+}
+
+/* Get the next message in the receive queue, or wait up to 5 seconds for
+ * the next message, returning NULL if no message is received in that time. */
+unix_msg_t *get_unix_msg(proc_instance_t *pi)
+{
+	unix_msg_t *umsg;
+
+	mutex_lock(&pi->rmsg_lock);
+	if (!pi->unix_msgs) {
+		tv_t now;
+		ts_t abs;
+
+		tv_time(&now);
+		tv_to_ts(&abs, &now);
+		abs.tv_sec += 5;
+		cond_timedwait(&pi->rmsg_cond, &pi->rmsg_lock, &abs);
+	}
+	umsg = pi->unix_msgs;
+	if (umsg)
+		DL_DELETE(pi->unix_msgs, umsg);
+	mutex_unlock(&pi->rmsg_lock);
+
+	return umsg;
+}
+
+void create_unix_receiver(proc_instance_t *pi)
+{
+	pthread_t pth;
+
+	mutex_init(&pi->rmsg_lock);
+	cond_init(&pi->rmsg_cond);
+
+	create_pthread(&pth, unix_receiver, pi);
+}
+
 static void broadcast_proc(ckpool_t *ckp, const char *buf)
 {
 	int i;
@@ -496,45 +576,31 @@ out:
 	return ret;
 }
 
-static void childsighandler(const int sig);
-
-struct proc_message {
-	proc_instance_t *pi;
-	char *msg;
-	const char *file;
-	const char *func;
-	int line;
-};
-
-/* Send all one way messages asynchronously so we can wait till the receiving
- * end closes the socket to ensure all messages are received but no deadlocks
- * can occur with 2 processes waiting for each other's socket closure. */
-void *async_send_proc(void *arg)
+/* Send a single message to a process instance when there will be no response,
+ * closing the socket immediately. */
+void _send_proc(proc_instance_t *pi, const char *msg, const char *file, const char *func, const int line)
 {
-	struct proc_message *pm = (struct proc_message *)arg;
-	proc_instance_t *pi = pm->pi;
-	char *msg = pm->msg;
-	const char *file = pm->file;
-	const char *func = pm->func;
-	int line = pm->line;
-
 	char *path = pi->us.path;
 	bool ret = false;
 	int sockd;
 
-	pthread_detach(pthread_self());
+	if (unlikely(!msg || !strlen(msg))) {
+		LOGERR("Attempted to send null message to %s in send_proc", pi->processname);
+		return;
+	}
 
 	if (unlikely(!path || !strlen(path))) {
 		LOGERR("Attempted to send message %s to null path in send_proc", msg ? msg : "");
 		goto out;
 	}
+
 	/* At startup the pid fields are not set up before some processes are
 	 * forked so they never inherit them. */
 	if (unlikely(!pi->pid)) {
 		pi->pid = get_proc_pid(pi);
 		if (!pi->pid) {
 			LOGALERT("Attempting to send message %s to non existent process %s", msg, pi->processname);
-			goto out_nofail;
+			return;
 		}
 	}
 	if (unlikely(kill_pid(pi->pid, 0))) {
@@ -551,38 +617,12 @@ void *async_send_proc(void *arg)
 		LOGWARNING("Failed to send %s to socket %s", msg, path);
 	else
 		ret = true;
-	if (!wait_close(sockd, 5))
-		LOGWARNING("send_proc %s did not detect close from %s %s:%d", msg, file, func, line);
 	Close(sockd);
 out:
 	if (unlikely(!ret)) {
 		LOGERR("Failure in send_proc from %s %s:%d", file, func, line);
 		childsighandler(15);
 	}
-out_nofail:
-	free(msg);
-	free(pm);
-	return NULL;
-}
-
-/* Send a single message to a process instance when there will be no response,
- * closing the socket immediately. */
-void _send_proc(proc_instance_t *pi, const char *msg, const char *file, const char *func, const int line)
-{
-	struct proc_message *pm;
-	pthread_t pth;
-
-	if (unlikely(!msg || !strlen(msg))) {
-		LOGERR("Attempted to send null message to %s in send_proc", pi->processname);
-		return;
-	}
-	pm = ckalloc(sizeof(struct proc_message));
-	pm->pi = pi;
-	pm->msg = strdup(msg);
-	pm->file = file;
-	pm->func = func;
-	pm->line = line;
-	create_pthread(&pth, async_send_proc, pm);
 }
 
 /* Send a single message to a process instance and retrieve the response, then
diff --git a/src/ckpool.h b/src/ckpool.h
index fd192f97..2388aedd 100644
--- a/src/ckpool.h
+++ b/src/ckpool.h
@@ -30,6 +30,15 @@ struct ckmsg {
 
 typedef struct ckmsg ckmsg_t;
 
+typedef struct unix_msg unix_msg_t;
+
+struct unix_msg {
+	unix_msg_t *next;
+	unix_msg_t *prev;
+	int sockd;
+	char *buf;
+};
+
 struct ckmsgq {
 	ckpool_t *ckp;
 	char name[16];
@@ -43,6 +52,8 @@ struct ckmsgq {
 
 typedef struct ckmsgq ckmsgq_t;
 
+typedef struct proc_instance proc_instance_t;
+
 struct proc_instance {
 	ckpool_t *ckp;
 	unixsock_t us;
@@ -51,6 +62,11 @@ struct proc_instance {
 	int pid;
 	int oldpid;
 	int (*process)(proc_instance_t *);
+
+	/* Linked list of received messages, locking and conditional */
+	unix_msg_t *unix_msgs;
+	mutex_t rmsg_lock;
+	pthread_cond_t rmsg_cond;
 };
 
 struct connsock {
@@ -219,6 +235,8 @@ ckmsgq_t *create_ckmsgq(ckpool_t *ckp, const char *name, const void *func);
 ckmsgq_t *create_ckmsgqs(ckpool_t *ckp, const char *name, const void *func, const int count);
 void ckmsgq_add(ckmsgq_t *ckmsgq, void *data);
 bool ckmsgq_empty(ckmsgq_t *ckmsgq);
+unix_msg_t *get_unix_msg(proc_instance_t *pi);
+void create_unix_receiver(proc_instance_t *pi);
 
 ckpool_t *global_ckp;
 
diff --git a/src/connector.c b/src/connector.c
index 424483a8..43f268e5 100644
--- a/src/connector.c
+++ b/src/connector.c
@@ -768,25 +768,22 @@ static char *connector_stats(cdata_t *cdata)
 
 static int connector_loop(proc_instance_t *pi, cdata_t *cdata)
 {
-	int sockd = -1,  ret = 0, selret;
 	int64_t client_id64, client_id;
-	unixsock_t *us = &pi->us;
+	unix_msg_t *umsg = NULL;
 	ckpool_t *ckp = pi->ckp;
 	uint8_t test_cycle = 0;
-	char *buf = NULL;
-
-	do {
-		selret = wait_read_select(us->sockd, 5);
-		if (!selret && !ping_main(ckp)) {
-			LOGEMERG("Connector failed to ping main process, exiting");
-			ret = 1;
-			goto out;
-		}
-	} while (selret < 1);
+	char *buf;
+	int ret = 0;
 
 	LOGWARNING("%s connector ready", ckp->name);
 
 retry:
+	if (umsg) {
+		Close(umsg->sockd);
+		free(umsg->buf);
+		dealloc(umsg);
+	}
+
 	if (!++test_cycle) {
 		/* Test for pthread join every 256 messages */
 		if (unlikely(!pthread_tryjoin_np(cdata->pth_sender, NULL))) {
@@ -801,21 +798,11 @@ retry:
 		}
 	}
 
-	Close(sockd);
-	sockd = accept(us->sockd, NULL, NULL);
-	if (sockd < 0) {
-		LOGEMERG("Failed to accept on connector socket, exiting");
-		ret = 1;
-		goto out;
-	}
-
-	dealloc(buf);
-	buf = recv_unix_msg(sockd);
-	if (!buf) {
-		LOGWARNING("Failed to get message in connector_loop");
-		goto retry;
-	}
+	do {
+		umsg = get_unix_msg(pi);
+	} while (!umsg);
 
+	buf = umsg->buf;
 	LOGDEBUG("Connector received message: %s", buf);
 	/* The bulk of the messages will be json messages to send to clients
 	 * so look for them first. */
@@ -841,7 +828,7 @@ retry:
 			LOGINFO("Connector dropped client id: %"PRId64, client_id);
 	} else if (cmdmatch(buf, "ping")) {
 		LOGDEBUG("Connector received ping request");
-		send_unix_msg(sockd, "pong");
+		send_unix_msg(umsg->sockd, "pong");
 	} else if (cmdmatch(buf, "accept")) {
 		LOGDEBUG("Connector received accept signal");
 		cdata->accept = true;
@@ -853,7 +840,7 @@ retry:
 
 		LOGDEBUG("Connector received stats request");
 		msg = connector_stats(cdata);
-		send_unix_msg(sockd, msg);
+		send_unix_msg(umsg->sockd, msg);
 	} else if (cmdmatch(buf, "loglevel")) {
 		sscanf(buf, "loglevel=%d", &ckp->loglevel);
 	} else if (cmdmatch(buf, "shutdown")) {
@@ -878,13 +865,11 @@ retry:
 
 		sscanf(buf, "getxfd%d", &fdno);
 		if (fdno > -1 && fdno < ckp->serverurls)
-			send_fd(cdata->serverfd[fdno], sockd);
+			send_fd(cdata->serverfd[fdno], umsg->sockd);
 	} else
 		LOGWARNING("Unhandled connector message: %s", buf);
 	goto retry;
 out:
-	Close(sockd);
-	dealloc(buf);
 	return ret;
 }
 
@@ -996,6 +981,8 @@ int connector(proc_instance_t *pi)
 	create_pthread(&cdata->pth_sender, sender, cdata);
 	create_pthread(&cdata->pth_receiver, receiver, cdata);
 
+	create_unix_receiver(pi);
+
 	ret = connector_loop(pi, cdata);
 out:
 	dealloc(ckp->data);
diff --git a/src/libckpool.h b/src/libckpool.h
index 19158427..8901e3be 100644
--- a/src/libckpool.h
+++ b/src/libckpool.h
@@ -312,9 +312,6 @@ struct unixsock {
 
 typedef struct unixsock unixsock_t;
 
-typedef struct proc_instance proc_instance_t;
-
-
 void _json_check(json_t *val, json_error_t *err, const char *file, const char *func, const int line);
 #define json_check(VAL, ERR) _json_check(VAL, ERR,  __FILE__, __func__, __LINE__)
 
diff --git a/src/stratifier.c b/src/stratifier.c
index 7ea1497f..500cb835 100644
--- a/src/stratifier.c
+++ b/src/stratifier.c
@@ -1737,13 +1737,18 @@ static char *stratifier_stats(ckpool_t *ckp, sdata_t *sdata)
 
 static int stratum_loop(ckpool_t *ckp, proc_instance_t *pi)
 {
-	int sockd, ret = 0, selret = 0;
 	sdata_t *sdata = ckp->data;
-	unixsock_t *us = &pi->us;
+	unix_msg_t *umsg = NULL;
 	tv_t start_tv = {0, 0};
-	char *buf = NULL;
+	int ret = 0;
+	char *buf;
 
 retry:
+	if (umsg) {
+		free(umsg->buf);
+		dealloc(umsg);
+	}
+
 	do {
 		double tdiff;
 		tv_t end_tv;
@@ -1761,43 +1766,30 @@ retry:
 					 ckp->update_interval);
 				broadcast_ping(sdata);
 			}
-			continue;
 		}
-		selret = wait_read_select(us->sockd, 5);
-		if (!selret && !ping_main(ckp)) {
-			LOGEMERG("Generator failed to ping main process, exiting");
+
+		umsg = get_unix_msg(pi);
+		if (unlikely(!umsg &&!ping_main(ckp))) {
+			LOGEMERG("Stratifier failed to ping main process, exiting");
 			ret = 1;
 			goto out;
 		}
-	} while (selret < 1);
+	} while (!umsg);
 
-	sockd = accept(us->sockd, NULL, NULL);
-	if (sockd < 0) {
-		LOGERR("Failed to accept on stratifier socket, exiting");
-		ret = 1;
-		goto out;
-	}
-
-	dealloc(buf);
-	buf = recv_unix_msg(sockd);
-	if (unlikely(!buf)) {
-		Close(sockd);
-		LOGWARNING("Failed to get message in stratum_loop");
-		goto retry;
-	}
+	buf = umsg->buf;
 	if (likely(buf[0] == '{')) {
 		/* The bulk of the messages will be received json from the
 		 * connector so look for this first. The srecv_process frees
 		 * the buf heap ram */
-		ckmsgq_add(sdata->srecvs, buf);
-		Close(sockd);
-		buf = NULL;
+		Close(umsg->sockd);
+		ckmsgq_add(sdata->srecvs, umsg->buf);
+		umsg->buf = NULL;
 		goto retry;
 	}
 	if (cmdmatch(buf, "ping")) {
 		LOGDEBUG("Stratifier received ping request");
-		send_unix_msg(sockd, "pong");
-		Close(sockd);
+		send_unix_msg(umsg->sockd, "pong");
+		Close(umsg->sockd);
 		goto retry;
 	}
 	if (cmdmatch(buf, "stats")) {
@@ -1805,12 +1797,12 @@ retry:
 
 		LOGDEBUG("Stratifier received stats request");
 		msg = stratifier_stats(ckp, sdata);
-		send_unix_msg(sockd, msg);
-		Close(sockd);
+		send_unix_msg(umsg->sockd, msg);
+		Close(umsg->sockd);
 		goto retry;
 	}
 
-	Close(sockd);
+	Close(umsg->sockd);
 	LOGDEBUG("Stratifier received request: %s", buf);
 	if (cmdmatch(buf, "shutdown")) {
 		ret = 0;
@@ -1848,7 +1840,6 @@ retry:
 	goto retry;
 
 out:
-	dealloc(buf);
 	return ret;
 }
 
@@ -4535,6 +4526,8 @@ int stratifier(proc_instance_t *pi)
 	mutex_init(&sdata->share_lock);
 	mutex_init(&sdata->block_lock);
 
+	create_unix_receiver(pi);
+
 	LOGWARNING("%s stratifier ready", ckp->name);
 
 	ret = stratum_loop(ckp, pi);