WampServer

Windows XP (SP3) on an old laptop
Fresh OS install about 3 months ago
Pretty sure I've never installed WAMP on this machine before.

Downloaded:
wampserver2.2e-php5.4.3-httpd2.2.22-mysql5.5.24-32b.exe

Ran the install and at the end got an error message saying I was missing MSVCR100.dll

Downloaded and Installed Visual C++ 2010 SP1 Redistributable Package:
VC10 SP1 vcredist_x86.exe 32 bits (http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=8328)

Installed WAMP again (no error message this time)

After I click the desktop icon the WAMP icon appears in my tray as red for about 5 seconds and then turns orange

It says Wampserver online

When I click on Localhost or phpMyAdmin I get the following error message:

"Firefox can't establish a connection to the server at localhost"


Here's what I've tried after reading several posts here...

Unchecked the box on Skype to ensure it doesn't use Port 80.
Also exited completely from Skype

Tried Apache > Service > Test Port 80
Result "Your port 80 is not actually used"

Apache error log is empty

Also ran the netstat -aon command and there was nothing in the list using port 80

Searched for instances of my.ini
Found only one in C:\wamp\bin\mysql\mysql5.5.24

The only entry in the hosts file at "c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts" is
127.0.0.1 localhost

Tried to disable IIS by following this advice...

Control Panel, Add/Remove Programs, Add/Remove Windows Components, uncheck Internet Information Services (IIS)

But ISS doesn't appear in the list

I've started and stopped WAMP several times and rebooted several times.

I don't know what to try next. Thanks for any suggestions.

Never mind - I fixed it :-)

I decided to completely uninstall WAMP and reinstall it.

This time at the end of the install a window popped up saying the MS firewall was blocking Apache and it gave me the option to NOT block it. Did that and now it's working.

Don't know why I didn't get a firewall notice the first time I installed WAMP

Hope this helps someone else