Thanks for the advice Alexey.  I'm away from home at the moment but when I get back I will get onto it.

I've upgraded 3 laptops now with SSD drives. I personally always opt for a fresh install from scratch. 
It's a good time to start fresh and get rid of the cobwebs. This one I'm typing on is 9 years old now. It was a Vista OS with a typical 5200 RPM HD. My Daughter gave it to me as originally it was almost useless. Took 2 minutes + to boot.   The SSD ( and W7)  made a huge difference to what was about to be tossed in the trash can. It boots in 20 seconds and I can record 16 tracks all night long without a hic-up. 

Thanks Cactus, that's good to know.  I can certainly see the benefits of a fresh install, my only concern is the amount of time it takes to reload everything - it took about 48 hours this time round.  Although my broadband speed is sufficient to watch a film, it still takes a long time to download Sonar.  Then I've got Komplete 9U, which is initially loaded from disk, but then needs comprehensive updates downloaded.  On the other hand, it would avoid the hassle of trying to decide what's bloatware and can be deleted, and what's essential ...

SGodfrey
...the amount of time it takes to reload everything - it took about 48 hours this time round.  Although my broadband speed is sufficient to watch a film, it still takes a long time to download Sonar.  Then I've got Komplete 9U, which is initially loaded from disk, but then needs comprehensive updates downloaded...

 
I never download anything more than once if I can help it. I save a copy of every instalation file. I also keep a backup copy of all my multisamples. Reinstalling those is just one big copy & paste.

Kev999

SGodfrey
...the amount of time it takes to reload everything - it took about 48 hours this time round.  Although my broadband speed is sufficient to watch a film, it still takes a long time to download Sonar.  Then I've got Komplete 9U, which is initially loaded from disk, but then needs comprehensive updates downloaded...

 
I never download anything more than once if I can help it. I save a copy of every instalation file. I also keep a backup copy of all my multisamples. Reinstalling those is just one big copy & paste.

Another good suggestion, thanks Kev.  Although by the time I come round to my next rebuild there'll probably be more updates, so there will still need to be some substantial downloading.

When I swapped the HDD in my PC for a Samsung EVO SSD, I relied on the Samsung Data Migration tool.  It was a smooth ride.  But I did have a basic setup, with one C: drive MBR partition, and no OEM recovery partition, etc.
 
The image restore migration method mentioned earlier is very interesting!
 
One thing that I have heard about laptop migrations, is that is important to boot with only the one SSD drive attached the first time after swapping, so that the BIOS correctly identifies it as the boot drive partition.  Don't connect any secondary drives until this has been completed.
 
I have held off on swapping the slow 5400rpm HDD in my laptop due to the need to remove the keyboard and motherboard to access it first.  Ugh!  It's working OK now, and even though I build computers, I'm afraid I might kill the laptop!  I only bought a cheap Acer as a portable office, but discovered that I got lucky and it passes the real-time audio latency test.  It runs Sonar well, but waiting to load up is trying my patience!
 
Next laptop I buy will come from the factory with SSD pre-installed, LOL!!!

SSDs can draw large power spikes and this takes out electronics not specifically designed for it.
 

Kev999

SGodfrey
...the amount of time it takes to reload everything - it took about 48 hours this time round.  Although my broadband speed is sufficient to watch a film, it still takes a long time to download Sonar.  Then I've got Komplete 9U, which is initially loaded from disk, but then needs comprehensive updates downloaded...

 
I never download anything more than once if I can help it. I save a copy of every instalation file. I also keep a backup copy of all my multisamples. Reinstalling those is just one big copy & paste.

I also do save all installers in case I need them later ... but e.g. with the new NI Native Access this is no longer possible ... plus even if it would be possible, it is much more convient to have the machine sitting there over night doing one NI update after the other by itself rather than manually installing each of the Komplete Ultimate pieces ... I wish Sonar CCC would have "install all purchased" and "update all purchased" buttons

"I wish Sonar CCC would have "install all purchased" and "update all purchased" buttons"

Like this you mean?

That doesn't work. There was a thread about it. 
It only updates all of what ever tab is open.  
The joke was it should be called "Update Some Stuff" 
 
But relevant to the OT and CCC. 
 
All you need to do is download once to one computer. The CCC download folder can easily be copied and moved to the new machine. When you run the CCC from the new machine it will not have to download those files again unless something was out of date. It will use those files to install everything. 
 
And as said above most smart people keep all software download files on a back up drive. 
Sure it takes a bit of time to get everything up and running but it's not like your chained to the chair. I will always be doing something else,, even reading a book or cooking dinner while the slower programs install. 
I also recommend re booting after a few installs have completed. Many ask for this but even the ones that don't it cannot hurt. 
 
You can put that laptop up on Ebay, you'd be surprised what someone might pay for it. Like I have 2 laptops right now that parts would be nice to have. One the keyboard is shot, another was dropped and the case is cracked.  
 
What exactly was the laptop?