Sunlight Exposure to direct sunlight will destroy a vampire, but it is a very painful death. Vampires can, however, build a type of immunity to sunlight depending on their age and constitution. Lilith, the first vampire, can stay out in the sunlight for about five hours before having to seek shelter. Dracula could stay out in it for about three hours. He was not anywhere near the age of Lillith, but he had a tremendous constitution.
Most vampires can take a few moments of sunlight before they begin to burn, but it is painful.
This will also kill a vampire, but the creature must be burned to absolute dust. If not, then the creature can replenish itself with the right amount of blood. It is a slow and agonizing process. They are neither good or evil, they just are. The biggest problems with vampires are that they, first of all, need human blood to survive.