disable-socket.io-in-sails.js

// To disable socket.io, disable the sockets hook (you'll have to disable the pubsub hook as well)
// This is a replacement for the default app.js file:

require('sails').lift({
  hooks: {
    sockets: false,
    pubsub: false
  }
}, function doneLifting (err) { if (err) throw err; });

Same problem as rishabhmhjn, I tried setting in .sailsrc file:

"hook":{
    "pubsub":false,
    "sockets":false
}

But the sails.sockets and sails.io objects are still working.

For others coming here, on windows, npm installs sails-hook-socket in the top director now. So it's disabled in sails config, but reloaded again when checking for user hooks to load. See balderdashy/sails#3317

FYI: you need to also remove client-side javascript for sockets, see: balderdashy/sails#3580 (comment)