In addition (and usually before doing what you suggested) I would google for the message to see if it's maybe a known bug, and the problem might perhaps be solved by simply installing a newer version.  Even if this doesn't lead to an immediate solution, you'll often find related discussion which gives new ideas what to try.

I'm not saying this is necessarily the case here, just advocating the heuristic in general... (seems obvious, but I still often find it not being heeded)