Exam SK0-005 topic 1 question 141 discussion

B. Review the log files. The purple screen with white letters is commonly known as the "purple screen of death" (PSOD), which is an error screen that appears when there is a fatal error on an ESX/ESXi host. The first step in troubleshooting this issue should be to review the log files, which can provide additional information about the error that occurred. Checking the power supplies or reseating the processors would be unlikely to resolve this type of issue, as it is typically a software or configuration issue rather than a hardware issue. Reinstalling the ESX server would be a drastic step that should only be taken if all other troubleshooting steps have failed.

Memory Failures Memory sticks are particularly susceptible to power fluctuations and static electricity. Failed or failing RAM causes OS instability. With Windows Server, this usually causes a Blue Screen to occur. This Windows crash screen provides some clues as to the problem on screen or via a memory dump file that can help identify problems leading up to the crash. If the server successfully restarts, check the log files for more information. On VMware ESXi systems, memory errors may trigger a Purple crash screen. On Linux servers, a kernel panic error may indicate problems with RAM. The Official CompTIA Server+ Study Guide (Exam SK0-005) page 102.

A purple screen of death (PSOD) is a diagnostic screen with white type on a purple background that's displayed when the VMkernel of a VMware ESXi host experiences a critical error, becomes inoperative and terminates any virtual machines (VMs) that are running. The other answers could be the issue but are a bit drastic and definitely not something you do FIRST. https://www.techtarget.com/searchvmware/definition/Purple-Screen-of-Death-PSOD