A rack-mounted Linux application server has rebooted twice in the last hour. iDRAC hardware logs show that the CPU temperature exceeded the vendor's shutdown threshold immediately before each reboot. You have established a theory that an overworked CPU is triggering a thermal safety shutdown. According to the CompTIA troubleshooting methodology, what is the most appropriate next step to test this theory before making any configuration changes?
Update the server's BIOS and chipset firmware to the latest versions.
Restore the server from the most recent bare-metal backup to rule out operating-system corruption.
Reseat the CPU heat sink and apply new thermal paste to improve heat transfer.
Run a controlled CPU stress test while monitoring onboard temperature sensors to see whether the server shuts down again.
Testing the theory is still part of the information-gathering phase. The goal is to confirm or refute the suspected cause without yet implementing a fix. Running a controlled CPU stress test while watching the server's temperature sensors intentionally recreates the symptom under observation and uses diagnostic data to prove or disprove the thermal-shutdown theory. Reseating the heat sink or reapplying thermal paste is a corrective action that would be taken after the theory has been confirmed, updating firmware is a separate remediation step, and restoring from a backup neither replicates the symptom nor gathers evidence about CPU temperature, so those choices do not satisfy the "test the theory" step.
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Why is reseating the heat sink or applying new thermal paste a later step?