Vista has a feature called Remote Differential Compression that can greatly speed up the copying of files across networks and computer. But it only works if the computers on both ends are running Vista. If one of the computers is NOT running Vista but one is, this "feature" can actually result in agonizingly slow file transfers. On the order of days!

If you are trying to copy files over a network to another computer and the transfer is painfully slow, you can try turning off the Remote Differential Compression feature. This often results in a huge speed improvement.

To turn it off go to the Control Panel and click on Programs and Features. In the panel the opens, there should be a link on the left side of the page that reads "Turn Windows features on or off". Click on that link. The next page lists all the various features in Vista. Find the Remote Differential Compression and uncheck the box next to it and then hit the OK button.

That's all there is to it. You can then start your transfer again and if this is the source of the problem it'll be a lot faster now.