One thing that concerns me about live VSTi use is, how well does the instrument deal with overload?

In other words, when you are in the studio, and the limits of your DAW or VSTi computer are exceeded, the sound simply cuts off completely, stutters, or sometimes crashes altogether. Bad news, but not the end of the world... Re-boot, and offload some task to free up resources for the VSTi.

But in a live situation, without thoroughly testing EVERY single possible playing scenario, you can't guarantee that this won't happen, and live, this IS a tragedy...!

So.... is there any way to ensure that the CPU's resources are NEVER taxed to the point of breakdown? Some polyphony limit, or overhead meter that will warn you should you select a sound that cannot be handled, either by the CPU, or the HD?