How to Resolve the "Copy Speed 0 Bytes" Issue

"I recently acquired a mini PC with pre-installed Windows 10 64-bit. Upon setting it up over the weekend and attempting to transfer files to my USB drive, I've encountered incredibly slow speeds. The transfer rate fluctuates drastically during the copy or move process. The USB transfer speed seldom surpasses 10MB/s and frequently drops to zero every few seconds, resulting in the process hanging for several minutes. This leads to hours being consumed to copy a folder containing numerous files, with the majority of the time being unproductive. Can anyone offer assistance?"

If you're experiencing the issue of file transfer speed dropping to zero on Windows 10, here's an outline of the solutions to fix it: 1. **Check Network Connection**: Ensure that your network connection is stable and not experiencing any disruptions. 2. **Disable Antivirus or Firewall**: Temporarily disable your antivirus software or firewall to see if they are causing the slowdown. Remember to re-enable them after the test. 3. **Update Drivers**: Update your network adapter drivers to the latest version to improve compatibility and performance. 4. **Disable TCP Offloading**: In Device Manager, disable the "Large Send Offload v2 (IPv4)" and "Large Send Offload v2 (IPv6)" options for your network adapter. 5. **Adjust Transfer Settings**: Modify the Windows File Copy settings by running the command `fsutil behavior set copychunksize ` in Command Prompt, where `` is the preferred chunk size in kilobytes. 6. **Use a Different Transfer Method**: Try using alternative methods like USB, external hard drives, or cloud services to transfer files. 7. **Run Network Troubleshooter**: Utilize the built-in Windows Network Troubleshooter to diagnose and fix any network issues. 8. **Check for Malware**: Perform a full system scan to ensure your computer isn't affected by malware that could be impacting transfer speeds. 9. **Optimize Power Settings**: Ensure your power settings are set to "High Performance" mode, as power-saving modes can limit network performance. 10. **Reinstall Network Adapter**: If all else fails, uninstall and reinstall your network adapter drivers to refresh the configuration. Remember to restart your computer after making changes and test file transfers to see if the issue persists.

Workable Solutions Step-by-step Troubleshooting
Fix 1. Change the USB Port 3.0 If the USB drive supports USB 3.0/3.1, ensure it's plugged into a USB 3.0/3.1 port...Full steps
Fix 2. Update All Drivers Launch DriverHandy, click the blue button to scan your drivers...Full steps
Fix 3. Format FAT32 to NTFS Reformatting your USB drive or external drive to NTFS instead of FAT32 can be helpful...Full steps
Fix 4. Optimize Drives If you encounter slow external hard drive transfer speeds, optimizing drives may help...Full steps
Fix 5. Disable Windows Auto-Tuning If copying data over the network, disable the auto-tuning feature...Full steps
Fix 6. Disable Remote Differential Compression Solving the 0-byte copy speed issue can be achieved by disabling Remote Differential Compression...Full steps

Windows 10 has proven to be one of the most popular and stable operating systems in existence. However, despite its widespread adoption, it is not immune to encountering errors. One particularly stubborn issue that users often face is the difficulty in transferring files to a drive, USB, or across a network, which either becomes stuck or experiences significant lag during the process.

This page will present practical solutions to address the issue of USB transfer speed dropping to 0. Let's explore them immediately.

"Practical Solutions for Fixing Zero File Transfer Speed Issues in Windows 10"

To address the issue of file transfer speed dropping to zero while copying on Windows 10, ensure that your operating system is updated to the latest version. Additionally, investigate if your antivirus software could be causing the slow transfer speed. You can temporarily disable the antivirus to facilitate the data transfer to the memory, and then reactivate it once the copying process is complete.

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Obtain a faster and new USB transfer cable for swift and secure data transmission.
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After making these two fixes, continue using the practical methods below to figure out.

1. Change the USB 3.0 Port

Your computer has a variety of USB ports. If the USB drive or external hard drive supports USB 3.0/3.1, plug it into a USB 3.0/3.1 port. A USB 3 port is typically blue. Switching to the appropriate port will significantly boost copy speeds and resolve the issue of 0-byte copy speed.

2. Update All Drivers

Windows typically prefers to install its own drivers for computer peripherals, as using alternative drivers can occasionally result in reduced file transfer performance. You might be interested in DriverHandy, a professional driver management tool. It aids in locating the most appropriate driver and updating all your drivers automatically. Download it now to give it a try.

Step 1. Launch the tool DriverHandy on your desktop.

Step 2. Locate the drivers you wish to update and click "Update."

choose the target driver

3. Format File System from FAT32 to NTFS on USB/External Hard Drive/HDD Step 1: Connect the USB drive or external hard drive to your computer. Step 2: Open "File Explorer" or "My Computer" on your Windows PC. Step 3: Locate the USB or external hard drive in the list of drives, usually labeled with a letter (e.g., E:, F:, G:). Step 4: Right-click on the drive and select "Format" from the context menu. Step 5: In the "Format" window that appears, under "File system," choose "NTFS" from the drop-down menu. Step 6: Make sure the "Quick Format" option is checked. This will speed up the formatting process. Step 7: If you have important data on the drive, click "Backup now" to save your files before proceeding. Otherwise, proceed to the next step. Step 8: Click "Start" to begin the formatting process. A warning message will appear, confirming if you want to proceed. Click "OK" to continue. Step 9: Wait for the formatting to complete. This may take a few minutes depending on the size of the drive. Step 10: Once the formatting is finished, click "OK" to close the Format window. Your USB or external hard drive is now formatted with the NTFS file system. You can use it to store and transfer larger files that exceed the 4 GB limit imposed by FAT32.

Occasionally, a drive's copy speed displaying 0 bytes might be due to it not being formatted with the correct file system. In such cases, you can reformat your USB drives or external hard drives from FAT32 to NTFS. This solution has worked for some users.

tools Partition Master is a popular disk partition management tool that caters to all disk or partition-related tasks, including formatting disk partitions, along with comprehensive disk management solutions.

Tip: Before formatting your USB drive or other devices to address the "file transfer speed 0 bytes" issue, it's advisable to back up your data to prevent data loss.

    1. Right-click on the external drive or USB you plan to format and select "Format."
    2. Set the Partition label, File system (NTFS/FAT32/EXT2/EXT3/EXT4/exFAT), and Cluster size, then hit "OK."
    3. Click "Yes" to proceed with the formatting.
    4. Click the "Execute 1 Task(s)" button and then click "Apply" to format the hard drive partition.

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Obtain a faster and new USB transfer cable for swift and secure data transmission.
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4. Defragment and Optimize Drives

Using Windows's built-in disk defragmentation tool, you can reorganize the files on a disk to occupy contiguous storage space, thereby enhancing file access speed and resolving issues with USB transfer speeds dropping to zero. To optimize your drives, follow these steps: 1. Press the Windows key + X on your keyboard and choose "Windows Administrative Tools" from the menu. 2. Click on "Defragment and Optimize Drives" to open the Defragmentation utility. 3. In the "Optimize Drives" window, you'll see a list of available drives, including your USB drive if it's connected. 4. Select the drive you want to defragment and click on "Analyze." 5. The tool will analyze the drive and determine if defragmentation is necessary. If it says the drive needs optimization, click on "Optimize" or "Defragment." 6. Wait for the process to complete. This may take some time depending on the size of the drive and the level of fragmentation. 7. Once finished, close the "Optimize Drives" window. Your drive should now be optimized, potentially improving file access and USB transfer speeds. Note: For newer versions of Windows (Windows 8 and later), the defragmentation process is automatic and usually runs in the background. However, running it manually occasionally can still be beneficial in some cases.

    1. Press the Windows Key, type defragment, and then click on "Defragment and Optimize Drives" when it appears in the search results. 2. Choose your system drive (usually the C drive) and click on Optimize.

How to speed up Windows 10 - Defragment and optimize drives

5. Disable Windows Auto-Tuning

If you copy data over the network, the auto-tuning feature can improve the performance of programs that receive TCP data over a network. However, disabling this feature might result in a faster copy speed in certain scenarios.

Step 1. Press the Windows key + X and choose Command Prompt (Admin).

Step 2. Type netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=disabled and press Enter.

Step 3. Next, attempt to transfer the files and monitor the data transfer speed. Reopen the Command Prompt (in Admin mode) and type netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=normal then press Enter to re-enable Auto-tuning.

Disable Auto-Tuning to Fix Slow File Transfer in Windows 10

6. Disable Remote Differential Compression

The Remote Differential Compression task compresses data before transmitting it over the network. This process can consume significant time and potentially cause network congestion. To expedite file copying, moving, or deletion operations, you can disable this feature.

    1. Open the Control Panel and choose Programs and Features. 2. Next, from the left-hand panel, select Turn Windows features on or off. 3. Search for Remote Differential Compression API Support and deselect the checkbox beside it. 4. Click OK to apply the changes.

disable RDC to fix Windows 10 slow file transfer

Final Word

Here are some of the most effective methods to resolve file transfer speed dropping to zero in Windows 10 and boost the speed of the copy-paste process for files. These approaches will also be applicable when using USB devices.

External hard drive mobile transfers to the computer. File transfer speed can be influenced by various factors, so you should try all possible methods until the issue is resolved.

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Obtain a faster and newer USB transfer cable for quick and secure data transmission.
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File Transfer Speed Drops to Zero - Windows 10 FAQs

The three most common questions regarding PC or USB file transfer speed dropping to zero on Windows 10 and how to resolve them. Here are some concise solutions for these issues.

Why does USB transfer speed decrease?

The reason you noticed a decrease in speed shortly after writing to the USB drive is probably due to the operating system's use of buffer caching. For efficiency, the OS doesn't immediately write to the USB drive but instead stores the data in a buffer cache, assuming that there's no immediate need to commit the changes to the file. This caching mechanism helps optimize performance by batching multiple writes together before actually writing them to the slower storage device, like a USB key.

In most cases, it is perfectly fine to cache the write and write it later in the background (this is true for hard drives, but not necessarily for USB keys). This decline was caused by writing larger data in batches, and your operating system decided that it should no longer write to the buffer cache.

"Why is file copying so slow in Windows 10?"

Why does my file transfer stop? The main reasons why the copying speed decreases to 0 or why the speed of copying files to a USB is very slow can be:

    • The USB is of very poor quality or utilizes the 2.0 protocol
    • The ports on our computer are USB 2.0
    • Issues with PC hardware
    • The file system of a USB flash drive or external hard drive is not NTFS
    • Infection by viruses or malware

How can I improve the copy and paste speed in Windows 10?

How to Accelerate File Transfer in Windows 10? Try These Tips: 1. Use a Fast Connection: Ensure you have a stable and fast internet connection or a high-speed local network for transferring files. 2. Disable Antivirus Software: Temporarily disable your antivirus software during the transfer process, as it may slow down the speed while scanning files. 3. Close Unnecessary Programs: Close other running applications that might be using system resources, as they can slow down the transfer process. 4. Transfer Files in Bulk: Instead of transferring one file at a time, select multiple files or an entire folder to transfer simultaneously. 5. Optimize Power Settings: If using a laptop, switch to 'Performance' mode in power settings to prioritize processing speed over battery life. 6. Defragment Your Hard Drive: Defragment the hard drive where the files are stored, as this can improve read and write speeds. 7. Use a USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt Port: Connect external devices like USB drives to a USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt port for faster data transfer rates. 8. Update Drivers: Make sure your storage device drivers are up to date to ensure optimal performance. 9. Use wired Connections: Whenever possible, use a wired Ethernet connection instead of Wi-Fi for faster and more reliable transfers. 10. Third-Party Tools: Consider using file transfer software optimized for speed, such as TeraCopy or FastCopy, which offer additional features to enhance the process. Remember to re-enable your antivirus software after the transfer is complete for continued system protection.

    1. Set Explorer Settings to Realtime
    2. Change USB Format to NTFS
    3. Acquire an SSD Drive
    4. Upgrade RAM
    5. Disable Auto-Tuning
    6. Enable Better Performance for USB Devices
    7. Defragment Drives