diff --git a/tools/ei-socket-client.c b/tools/ei-socket-client.c
index 46d4b01..3cf8e15 100644
--- a/tools/ei-socket-client.c
+++ b/tools/ei-socket-client.c
@@ -46,7 +46,8 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	/* This should be handled by libei */
 	signal(SIGPIPE, SIG_IGN);
 
-	int rc = ei_socket_init(ei, SOCKETNAME);
+	int rc = ei_socket_init(ei, getenv("LIBEI_SOCKET") ? NULL : SOCKETNAME);
+
 	if (rc != 0) {
 		fprintf(stderr, "init failed: %s\n", strerror(errno));
 		return 1;