Hi...

here is what I assume what could be causing the problem.
First of all it does not matter in which order you install Phex and Java VM.
When you start Phex by using the Phex.exe or the shortcut link, Phex tries to find your Java VM by using the registry. There are cases with multiple versions of Java VM installations or corrupt installations where this lookup fails.
You can use Phex_debug.exe to get some output that might help me find and solve the problem for you.
An alternative way to start Phex is by going through the command line to the Phex installation directory and use the command 'java -jar phex.jar'.

About the IP address issue. Knowing its IP address is not required to connect to anyone. In fact Phex does not even use its own IP for anything else then sharing its content.

After the first successful connection Phex auto detects its IP from its outside connection. The remote host is almost always the most reliable source to determine your correct IP to the outside.
The address is reported as 127.0.0.1 as long as Phex has not connected during the current session.

To be able to share and participate on the network it is much more important to allow incoming connections. Depending on your router and network setup it might be required to activate port forwarding to share efficiently.

Gregor

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