diff --git a/src/ChangeLog b/src/ChangeLog
index 58d2196af..43381a610 100644
--- a/src/ChangeLog
+++ b/src/ChangeLog
@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
 2003-10-25  Pavel Roskin  <proski@gnu.org>
 
+	* background.c (do_background): Use pipe() instead of less
+	portable socketpair().  Close comm[0] in the child.
+
 	* wtools.c (mc_message): Fix argument expansion.
 
 	* background.c: Leave only code used when WITH_BACKGROUND is
diff --git a/src/background.c b/src/background.c
index 5df57d5ec..af2202690 100644
--- a/src/background.c
+++ b/src/background.c
@@ -41,11 +41,6 @@
 #include "widget.h"
 #include "wtools.h"
 
-/*
- * We currenlty only support one way of comunicating the background
- * and foreground process by using the socketpair system call
- */
-#include <sys/socket.h>
 #include "fileopctx.h"
 #include "key.h"	/* For add_select_channel(), delete_select_channel() */
 #include "eregex.h"
@@ -55,10 +50,6 @@
 /* If true, this is a background process */
 int we_are_background = 0;
 
-#ifndef HAVE_SOCKETPAIR
-int socketpair(int, int, int, int fd[2]);
-#endif /* HAVE_SOCKETPAIR */
-
 /* File descriptor for talking to our parent */
 static int parent_fd;
 
@@ -120,7 +111,7 @@ do_background (struct FileOpContext *ctx, char *info)
     int comm[2];		/* control connection stream */
     pid_t pid;
 
-    if (socketpair (AF_UNIX, SOCK_STREAM, 0, comm) == -1)
+    if (pipe (comm) == -1)
 	return -1;
 
     if ((pid = fork ()) == -1)
@@ -129,6 +120,7 @@ do_background (struct FileOpContext *ctx, char *info)
     if (pid == 0) {
 	int nullfd;
 
+	close (comm[0]);
 	parent_fd = comm[1];
 	we_are_background = 1;