diff --git a/hive-c0re/src/agent_sockets.rs b/hive-c0re/src/agent_sockets.rs
index 05a8cc25..0c0b6c58 100644
--- a/hive-c0re/src/agent_sockets.rs
+++ b/hive-c0re/src/agent_sockets.rs
@@ -37,6 +37,22 @@
 //!
 //! Atomicity: same `<path>.tmp` + `rename()` shape as `agent_ports.rs`
 //! so the gateway's nginx worker never reads a partial file.
+//!
+//! ## Per-agent subdir layout
+//!
+//! `<sockets-root>/<name>/web.sock`, NOT `<sockets-root>/<name>.sock`.
+//! Each agent's container bind-mounts the per-agent SUBDIR
+//! (`/run/hive-agent/<name>/`), and the harness binds the socket
+//! inside it. File-level bind-mounts don't survive the harness's
+//! "unlink stale socket then `bind(2)` a new one" cycle — the unlink
+//! drops the bind, the rebind happens in private container
+//! namespace, host never sees the new inode. Bind-mounting the
+//! parent dir keeps both sides looking at the same dir inode so the
+//! socket appears on the host the moment the harness binds it.
+//!
+//! Per-agent dir isolation (one dir per agent rather than a shared
+//! `/run/hive-agent/` bind) satisfies mara on #800: an agent's
+//! container only sees its own dir + socket, never siblings'.
 
 use std::collections::BTreeMap;
 use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
@@ -47,25 +63,38 @@ use crate::lifecycle::MANAGER_NAME;
 
 const HOST_SOCKETS_PATH: &str = "/var/lib/hyperhive/agent-sockets.json";
 
-/// Host-side directory that holds per-agent unix sockets. Each
-/// agent's container bind-mounts only its own `<name>.sock` from
-/// this dir, scoping access per mara's #800 directive ("agents can
-/// only access their own sockets"). The gateway container gets the
-/// whole dir mounted read-only so it can proxy to every agent.
+/// Host-side parent directory holding per-agent socket subdirs. The
+/// gateway container bind-mounts this whole tree (read-only) so it
+/// can `proxy_pass` to any agent. Each agent's container bind-mounts
+/// only its own `<name>/` subdir, scoping access per mara's #800
+/// directive ("agents can only access their own sockets").
 pub const AGENT_SOCKET_DIR: &str = "/run/hive-agent";
 
+/// Socket filename inside each per-agent subdir. Fixed so the path
+/// derives entirely from `(AGENT_SOCKET_DIR, name)` — no second
+/// degree of freedom for callers to get wrong.
+pub const SOCKET_FILENAME: &str = "web.sock";
+
 #[must_use]
 pub fn host_sockets_path() -> PathBuf {
     PathBuf::from(HOST_SOCKETS_PATH)
 }
 
+/// Per-agent socket subdir on the host. Lifecycle pre-creates this
+/// before container start so the bind-mount source exists; the
+/// harness binds the socket inside it as `web.sock`.
+#[must_use]
+pub fn agent_dir_for(name: &str) -> PathBuf {
+    Path::new(AGENT_SOCKET_DIR).join(name)
+}
+
 /// Compute the deterministic socket path for an agent. Pure function
 /// of the agent name so the value matches whatever
 /// [`agent_sockets::write`] writes for that agent, and whatever the
 /// harness binds via `HIVE_WEB_SOCKET` post-#784 phase 1.
 #[must_use]
 pub fn socket_path_for(name: &str) -> PathBuf {
-    Path::new(AGENT_SOCKET_DIR).join(format!("{name}.sock"))
+    agent_dir_for(name).join(SOCKET_FILENAME)
 }
 
 /// Compute the agent-socket map for the given logical agent names.
@@ -142,12 +171,26 @@ mod tests {
     use super::*;
 
     #[test]
-    fn socket_path_for_uses_agent_dir_constant() {
-        // The path is derived from `AGENT_SOCKET_DIR` — pin both ends
-        // so a future move (e.g. to `/run/hyperhive/sockets/`)
-        // requires updating both the constant and the consumers.
+    fn socket_path_for_uses_subdir_layout() {
+        // Per-agent subdir + fixed socket filename — see module-level
+        // "Per-agent subdir layout" for why this isn't a flat
+        // `<name>.sock`. Pin both ends so a future move (e.g. to
+        // `/run/hyperhive/sockets/`) requires updating both the
+        // constant and the consumers.
         let p = socket_path_for("iris");
-        assert_eq!(p, Path::new("/run/hive-agent/iris.sock"));
+        assert_eq!(p, Path::new("/run/hive-agent/iris/web.sock"));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn agent_dir_for_is_socket_parent() {
+        // `agent_dir_for` is what lifecycle bind-mounts per agent;
+        // `socket_path_for` lives inside it. Keep them in lockstep so
+        // a divergence (e.g. typo in one constant) surfaces here
+        // rather than as a confusing nspawn bind-source-not-found at
+        // container start.
+        let dir = agent_dir_for("iris");
+        let sock = socket_path_for("iris");
+        assert_eq!(sock.parent(), Some(dir.as_path()));
     }
 
     #[test]
@@ -197,8 +240,8 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn render_is_pretty_and_sorted() {
         let mut map = BTreeMap::new();
-        map.insert("zeta".to_owned(), PathBuf::from("/run/hive-agent/zeta.sock"));
-        map.insert("alpha".to_owned(), PathBuf::from("/run/hive-agent/alpha.sock"));
+        map.insert("zeta".to_owned(), PathBuf::from("/run/hive-agent/zeta/web.sock"));
+        map.insert("alpha".to_owned(), PathBuf::from("/run/hive-agent/alpha/web.sock"));
         let body = render(&map);
         // Pretty-print = newlines between keys + indentation.
         assert!(body.contains('\n'));
@@ -218,9 +261,9 @@ mod tests {
         // gateway-side reader can deserialise into String values
         // without nested struct logic.
         let mut map = BTreeMap::new();
-        map.insert("iris".to_owned(), PathBuf::from("/run/hive-agent/iris.sock"));
+        map.insert("iris".to_owned(), PathBuf::from("/run/hive-agent/iris/web.sock"));
         let body = render(&map);
         assert!(body.contains("\"iris\""));
-        assert!(body.contains("\"/run/hive-agent/iris.sock\""));
+        assert!(body.contains("\"/run/hive-agent/iris/web.sock\""));
     }
 }