XAMPP / WAMP problem with port 80

I tried to install XAMPP on a Vista machine but I couln’t get the apache web server running. Port 80 was already used by another process. Since I have not installed the usual suspect Skype, I installed WAMP which comes with a port check tool that gives more detailed information than the one in XAMPP. And it told me the service using port 80 was microsoft-httpapi/2.0. After some googeling I learned that this is the SQL Server Reporting Services service from my SQL Server 2008 installation. To solve the problem do the following:

  • Open the SQL Server Configuration Manager
  • Double-click on SQL Server Reporting Services
  • Stop the service
  • On Tab Service changed the start mode to manual

Then port 80 is not used anymore and XAMPP and WAMP can be used without problems.

XAMPP slow on Vista

Just installed XAMPP lite on my Vista machine. The installation went smooth but the web server feels somehow slow. There is often a delay of about 1-2 seconds without any CPU load when I open a web page. I encountered this problem before on other Vista machines but never found a solution for it. Now I found a solution:

  • Open notepad.exe as administrator (right-click Notepad icon -> run as administrator)
  • Click on File -> Open
  • Change the selection Text files (*.txt) to All files (*.*)
  • Open the file C:WindowsSystem32driversetchosts
  • Change the line
    ::1             localhost

    to

    #::1             localhost
  • Save and close notepad

That’s it.