What is "triple fault"

n. (label en computing) (l en An exception thrown by the CPU while trying to handle a double fault, typically resulting in immediate rebooting.) vb. (label en computing) To cause a #Noun to happen.

A triple fault is a special kind of exception generated by the CPU when an exception occurs while the CPU is trying to invoke the double fault exception handler, which itself handles exceptions occurring while trying to invoke a regular exception handler.

x86 processors beginning with the 80286 will cause a shutdown cycle to occur when a triple fault is encountered. This typically causes the motherboard hardware to initiate a CPU reset which in turn causes the whole computer to reboot.