I just did a reinstall and kept all my VSTs in the same place they were as you are planning to do.  I had to re-activate a few, but many/most just came up with a VST scan on the new install.  It definitely was a LOT faster than having to completely reinstall from scratch even if I did have to re-register a few of them.
 
Hope that helps.

mettelus
 
since the SSD speed is comparable to RAM.

In my mind RAM will be substantially faster than an SSD.
 

I agree with Paul. 

well, the page file issue caused me to do more research...this info seemed consistent from MSDN and Crucial:
1. the page file should be on the SSD.  I found some articles that talked about page files increasing with increasing ram, but limiting its size is recommended... and the damage caused by page file type of reads/writes may damage the disk but over a period of 'years.'
2. page files may not be necessary if enough ram is used... these recommendations were 8 or 16 Gb, depending on the apps you use.
3.  the page file should be setup as a single size, ie, min=max.
so i'm gonna use 8Gb ram, setup a 2Gb page file on the ssd, and track ram to see if i push the use of 8Gb ram... if that happens, i'll install a couple more sticks... so the page file should not ordinarily be accessed... I may even use a USB 3 ready boost as a page/hibernation/indexing drive, pending further research.

I have never adjusted the paging file but just checked. In Win7 64, it defaults to 16MB and allocates it as needed. When you set it to a manual level a pop-up comes up warning of "minimum recommended of 400MB" in case of a system crash which would allow the dmp file to be written. I would recommend letting Win7 control the file, as it will dynamically allocate that page as needed (dmp files I have had are over 1GB).
 
OT - I am baffled at times about posts, since I routinely (i.e. always) run two sound interfaces in tandem, and have multiple "RAM hungry" programs open at the same time. It is quite possible that Win7 uses that paging file to free RAM, since I cannot get mine to go above 4GB and stay there, and only a few programs can peg my CPU. The Saffire "ASIO" drivers seem to be a WDM wrapper of sorts, as I found I can open multiple programs in "ASIO" mode (X3, Melodyne (stand-alone), Geist (stand-alone), Audition). I respond to posts while listening to mix-downs, and respond to messages on Yahoo regularly (running on the onboard sound card). This machine is going on 3 years old, so I get totally thrown at times when I see complex issues on more capable machines.
 
 

I suppose it depends on what you find a reasonable timespan for your SSDs to last. Modern SSDs have a very reasonable amount of write operations before they fail, it's true. Still, the page file tends to get written to a lot. I personally feel safer with the page file on another disk. But again, not an IT expert.
8GB sounds like a good starting point. Good luck!

Multiple software programs can share an ASIO driver. It is just that only 1 ASIO driver can be active at any one time. That equals one sound card using ASIO drivers.

Sanderxpander
You really, REALLY don't need more than 16GB RAM unless you're using huuuuuge libraries all the time, and/or are doing heavy video editing. I have only 8 and never run into trouble (though I did keep two slots open for easy expansion should the need arise). My system is very responsive. I also use an SSD for OS and VSTs with all heavy content and libraries on another drive. I'm afraid you'll have to reinstall most, if not all, VSTs. They'll be looking for some registry info or authorization which isn't stored with the DLLs usually.
 
EDIT:
I would DEFINITELY use an SSD for audio streaming by the way, if you can afford another large one for your sample libraries and content. Audio recording, probably not, since their maximum life span is determined mostly by the number of writes. But for sample streaming they're very reliably and kick the ass of any current regular spinning HDD. 

I agree....Deffo an SSD for sample streaming if you can stretch to it plus 16GB ram. I've only got 32 in mine as I got an awesome price. I use orchestral templates so not a bad idea anyway given how huge they can be.

mudgel
Multiple software programs can share an ASIO driver. It is just that only 1 ASIO driver can be active at any one time. That equals one sound card using ASIO drivers.

I never noticed this to be true before, is that because programs take exclusive control by default?

EDIT: My googling says ASIO drivers can only be used by a single application, which I also thought. But that doesn't seem to fit with Metellus' comments. I'm confused now.

mudgel
Multiple software programs can share an ASIO driver. It is just that only 1 ASIO driver can be active at any one time. That equals one sound card using ASIO drivers.

That is why I am still confused. Here is the thread I first posted that on. Not only do I have the Saffire set to be given exclusive rights (in Win7), but X3 is also not checked to "Share drivers with other programs." After I inadvertently did this twice, I started to intentionally do it... and they ALL will play simultaneously through the Saffire. In the past, just having a program open with an ASIO "lock" on my interface and opening another would give Win7 a heart attack.
 
I am just assuming that the Saffire drivers are simply a "stellar WDM wrapper" specific to the Saffire. I am playing two different songs as I am typing this... one through X3, the other through Melodyne (stand-alone). I wish my Camtasia trial was still active, this is a "have to see to believe" thing.
 
 
Edit: I just took a video with my cell phone and kicked it out in Premiere. I had to use CBR to be able to read the "ASIO" on both Melodyne and X3, so it is 12.5MB (may be slow to load)  Demonstration is here.