Windows XP forum: Adobe Flash not working

There is never the "one thing" when you encounter this issue. Think about what I've used in the past.

1. "DAF's primary philosophy is to fix problems by setting various things back to their original Microsoft defaults. DAF currently does not interface with or repair any third party programs (and there are no plans to do so)." http://wiki.lunarsoft.net/wiki/Dial-a-fix

2. The arcane repair noted at some sites:
"have your xp cd in the drive and then start > run and copy the below

rundll32.exe setupapi,InstallHinfSection DefaultInstall 132 %windir%\Inf\ie.inf
"
Line 29 at http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

I've seen this before with some customers, and it's so simple there is no reason to not check it.

You will need to check the add-ons within Internet Explorer, and ensure that Flash Player is currently enabled. When resetting IE to defaults one of the things it does is disable your currently installed add-ons. Additionally, if you have a "robust", bloated, security suite it could be managing related security settings which we can check as well.

Begin by opening Internet Explorer. You will want to select Tools > Manage Add-ons > Enable/Disable Add-ons. This will bring up a window with currently installed... add-ons.

What we're looking for is Shockwave Flash Object if you scroll to the right, within that window, the file name should be 'Flash9f.ocx'. You will see a "Status" column which should say Enabled. If disabled simply click Shockwave Flash Object, and click the Enable radial button towards the bottom of the window. Close the window, and close/reopen the web browser.

If that's not the case you can check the security settings to ensure that you can successfully "install" ActiveX components. This is done by opening Tools > Internet Options, and then the Security (tab). Click on the "Custom level..." button, and we are looking fort he ActiveX category which is represented by a tri-colored cube icon. We are looking for the "Run ActiveX controls and plug-ins..." option which needs to be set to Enable. If not already done so set it to enable, apply, and then close/reopen the web browser.

Check to see if the issue is resolved by visiting a website you know requires Adobe Flash Player. If you continue to have problems you may want to uninstall/reinstall the application, and/or reset the browser to defaults to disable possible conflicting add-ons.

Thanks,
SoulRaven

After trying everything i could find (diable firewall, virus software, unintall old versions, reinstall, upgrade IE, etc.) this Adobe fis FINALLY worked!

http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/190/tn_19091.html

Summary: Run>'regedit'
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ActiveX Compatibility\{D27CDB6E-AE6D-11CF-96B8-444553540000}\

If there is a "kill bit" entry called "compatibility flags" delete it or change the value to zero. (I deleted mine)

I had the same issue, uninstalled flash player reinstalled it with no luck. Deleted this entry and it all worked.