XAMPP fails to start Apache 2 on Windows

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I recently decided to install XAMPP on Windows. I have done in many times on Linux and process was always very smooth. The installation of XAMPP on Windows Vista turned out to be a task from hell. For a long time I could not start Apache web server. First it would not start because uninstalled IIS kept some junk behind that was blocking port 80, then nothing would happen at all. Installing it as service did not do a difference. The problem with this is that there were multiple problems, I will describe each problem faced and how to fix it.

If you do not care on which port the Apache will run (localhost:81, localhost:xx and not localhost), then just change the listening port in httpd.conf. To change the listening port open httpd.conf, which is located in

 \xampp_install_path\apache\conf\httpd.conf

However, if you want to use default port - continue reading...

Problem # 1

I used to have IIS web server installed on my computer for ASP.NET, overtime I decided to remove it because I did not use it. 

If you are not using IIS, you can remove it. To remove it do the following:

1. Start -> Control Panel -> Programs and Features 
2. Find section "Turn Windows features on or off"
3. Uncheck the box that says Internet Information Service (IIS) and press OK. 
   After pressing OK, it will take anywhere from 1 minute to 10 minutes to complete the process. You might also need to restart your PC after this, depending which OS your are running.
   

After I uninstalled IIS my Apache under XAMPP started and was working like a charm.

Problem # 2

Over some period of time, I tried to start Apache with XAMPP Control Panel and nothing would happen. I checked apache error log, nothing...

Starting apache manually using command line gave me following error:

Only one usage of each socket address (protocol/network address/port)is normally permitted.  : make_sock: could not bind to address 0.0.0.0:81no listening sockets available, shutting downUnable to open logs

It turned out to be temporary error caused by WinSCP. I started large file upload with WinSCP prior to attempting to start Apache. Turning off WinSCP solved the problem.

If you are not using WinSCP and are seeing this error then you have some program blocking port that apache tries to listen on. To fix it you need to turn off any software that could be causing it or change port on which apache is listening. Turn off software like IM, VOIP, Antivirus, etc... do it 1 program at a time and then try to launch apache to catch the program that causes the conflict. Also you can launch command line and execute netstat to check for connections using your desired port 80.

Other Problems

Skype - for some strange reason Skype is using port 80. Change port # on which Skype works by going to Tools -> Options or have your Skype off when you are using web server.

WinSCP - WinSCP causes weird things. Starting WinSCP before Apache under XAMPP will prevent Apache from starting. It did in my case, also I had problem with VPN connection because of WinSCP. Solution to this is Filezilla.