What commonly results from a stack overflow?

A stack overflow occurs when a program uses more stack space than is available, typically due to excessive memory usage such as deep or infinite recursion. The stack is a specific area of memory used for function calls and local variables. When the stack exceeds its limits, the program cannot continue operating correctly, leading to a crash or failure. This can manifest in various ways, such as producing an error message, terminating the program unexpectedly, or even corrupting memory.

The other choices, while they may relate to different aspects of programming or resource management, do not accurately describe the consequence of a stack overflow. For instance, data recovery and improved memory management are outcomes more associated with proper error handling or optimization practices. Increased program performance typically would not be the result of a stack overflow, as a crash inherently halts any operations of the program.