marrett wrote:The one and only uncommented line in hosts file is 127.0.0.1
You mean
127.0.0.1 localhostmarrett wrote:My w drive is on an external disk attached by USB to the PC .Has that got anything to do with it ? ( XAMPP is installed in the w drive )
That all depends on how you installed XAMPP to the USB drive or if the drive is mounted as a fixed partition or as removable media in your system.
If you installed it correctly as a USB removal drive then it should not be an issue.
Did you follow the instruction for installing to a USB and how did you answer the USB question in the Installation script when you installed XAMPP related to removable media on a USB drive?
You may have to uninstall it and try again but first make sure you follow the uninstall instruction methods in the XAMPP for Windows Home Page or in the
\xampp\readme-en.txt file.
You may also be able to run the
setup_xampp.bat file and switch between absolute (
with drive letter) and relative (
without drive letter) path names. Without a drive letter is usual for a removable USB installation, with a drive letter is usually for a fixed partition - use selection 2 Relocate XAMPP.
What Windows OS?
Do you have another XAMPP installation anywhere on your PC?
BTW it pays and saves much time when requesting support that you give as much detail as possible about your situation as we have no way of knowing these things unless you tell us.