An administrator identifies that a server is shutting down. The administrator powers up the server and OS loads but after a few minutes it powers down again. Which of the following is the cause?

A redundant power supply failure would not cause repeated shutdowns after OS load if at least one PSU is still functioning, and a total PSU failure would prevent the server from powering on at all.

CPUs require a short period of sustained load before reaching critical temperatures, which explains why the OS loads successfully before the shutdown occurs. Modern systems include thermal protection that triggers an automatic power-off when the CPU exceeds safe operating thresholds, preventing permanent hardware damage. This pattern - normal boot followed by shutdown after a few minutes of operation - is the classic signature of CPU overheating rather than any other hardware fault.

Memory failure typically manifests as POST errors, BSODs, kernel panics, or application crashes rather than a clean thermal-style power-off.

Hard disk failure causes disk read/write errors, OS boot failures, or filesystem corruption, not a complete and sudden power-down of the system.