Disabling a previously running apache2 process

[josephmo]

OS: Windows 10
XAMPP xampp-win32-7.1.7-0-VC14-installer

Apache 2.4 was installed on this machine, in a folder called c:\localhost\

I installed XAMPP, and when the installion was finished, and I clicked on start, I got the following error message:

5:09:46 AM [Apache] Apache Service detected with wrong path
5:09:46 AM [Apache] Change XAMPP Apache and Control Panel settings or
5:09:46 AM [Apache] Uninstall/disable the other service manually first
5:09:46 AM [Apache] Found Path: "C:\localhost\bin\httpd.exe" -k runservice

I checked, and there is no c:\localhost folder. This folder has been deleted.

I rebooted the machine, then deleted the XAMPP installation and rebooted, then re-installed XAMPP. I am still getting the same error message.

I checked the running programs/processes/services and there is no Apache 2.4 running. I also deleted the IIS server using the control panel. Any ideas?