So i have been using apache to run a local server on my home computer (Well xampp exactly) , from the past few days i have been having trouble starting apache on port 80. I was wondering what could possibly be the reason for that , MySql was running fine on port 3306 but apache’s port 80 was being used by some process . So i did a netstat –ano command at the command prompt to see its output , and to my surprise PID 4 was using the port 80. To find out which Process has the ID 4 (Process ID 4) i launched the Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) , went to Processes Tab and checked Show processes from all users

Well this is a screenshot after i got it working so you’ll see my httpd daemon is already running. I posted it just to make sure you guys are following me 

Now after some research i found some solutions , so i am going to list them all here. But none of them worked for me , (well they might for you)

Here is one solution from the site cameroncooke.com

1) Launch RegEdit:

2) Go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\HTTP

3) Add a new DWORD (32-bit) value

4) Name it ‘NoRun’ not including the quotes

5) Double click the new property

6) In the Value data field type ‘1? not including quotes and click OK

7) Re-boot your computer

But obviously it didn’t work for me.

Second solution from the comments on the same post

Go to Services (search for “services” on windows start menu ) and then disable Windows Remote Management

Third solution that worked for me was to disable the Running IIS server on my computer. It is disabled by default and i have turned it on some days back for some reasons . Turning that off solved my problem. Go to Windows Start menu and search for “turn windows features on or off”

Then start the program and uncheck the Internet Information Services

Then just reboot your computer and try to start the apache (it will start ofcourse).

I hope it helps a few fellow web developers. if you are still facing trouble please ask in the comments section

Update : Sometimes SKYPE also occupies port 80. So make sure to run your apache server before you start skype