Final answer:
It is true that directly connecting an I/O device to a virtual machine ties the VM to the physical server, hindering its portability and flexibility within a virtualized environment.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement is true: one disadvantage to a directly connected I/O device is that the virtual machine is tied to the physical server on which it is running. Direct I/O, such as PCI passthrough, allows a virtual machine to directly access a device, bypassing the host's hardware abstraction layer.
While this can lead to performance improvements by reducing I/O overhead, it also means that the virtual machine's portability is limited. The VM cannot easily be moved to another server without moving the connected device as well, which can be a logistical challenge and limit the flexibility offered by virtualized environments.
When an I/O device is directly connected to a physical server, it means that the virtual machine running on that server has exclusive access to the device.
This can pose a disadvantage because it ties the virtual machine to the specific physical server. If the server fails or needs to undergo maintenance, the virtual machine will also be affected.
Therefore, the statement is true.