Questions about the W530 I ordered (upgrades)

[Buckets]

I have ordered a lenovo w530 last week and it should be here pretty soon.

Here are the specs i ordered it with

	Processor		Intel Core i7-3720QM Processor (6M Cache, up to 3.60 GHz)
	Operating system		Genuine Windows 7 Professional (64 bit)
	Operating system language		Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 - English
	Display type		15.6" FHD (1920 x 1080) LED Backlit AntiGlare Display, Mobile Broadband Ready
	System graphics		NVIDIA Quadro K2000M Graphics with 2GB DDR3 Memory
	Total memory		4 GB PC3-12800 DDR3 (1 DIMM)
	Keyboard		Keyboard Backlit - US English
	Pointing device		UltraNav with Fingerprint Reader
	Camera		720p HD Camera with Microphone
	Hard drive		500GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
	Optical device		DVD Recordable
	System expansion slots		Express Card Slot & 4-in-1 Card Reader
	Battery		6 Cell Li-Ion TWL 70+
	Power cord		170W Slim AC Adapter - US (2pin)
	Bluetooth		Bluetooth 4.0 with Antenna
	Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters		Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 AGN
	Integrated mobile broadband		Mobile Broadband upgradable

I want to put the hard disk drive in the ultrabay for storage and a crucial m4 7mm solid state drive

(http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148530&nm_mc=OTC-sho6b0tCA&cm_mmc=OTC-sho6b0...)

 in the main bay as a boot drive and for programs

(i would get the samsung 830 7mm 256gb ssd, but there is only one online store that sells it in canada and it is a bit more expensive)

When installing the hard drive in the ultrabay, it needs the hard drive caddy.
Lenovo sells an official one, but there is also one from NewModeUS, according to various forum posts apparently works better and is slightly cheaper

http://www.newmodeus.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_reviews&cPath=2_7&products_id=400

I talked to a tech on the phone and he said that the 500gb will come with some rubber rails, but i will need more for the SSD

Is it also possible to install a 9.5mm SSD into the main bay without rails?

If not, can someone link me to the rails on the lenovo site? i rather not have to deal with Ebay even if it is a few bucks more...

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i also want to upgrade from the default 4gb of ram already in the laptop by removing the original and replacing with new modules to use dual channel mode at 1600mhz

Crucial says on their website both of these are compatible
1.35v
1600mhz
16gb (8gb x 2) 173$
http://www.crucial.com/store/mpartspecs.aspx?mtbpoid=03E9F8D4A5CA7304

8gb (4gb x 2) 53$
http://www.crucial.com/store/mpartspecs.aspx?mtbpoid=F985A7F2A5CA7304

i haven't decided if i will need 16gb of ram for the coding I will do once i start my CS degree in the fall, but i assume if I am using lots of Virtual machines or what not to run Linux side by side with Windows, (that's possible right?) it might gobble up the GB's, i also might experiment with ram disks to see how those work...

also:
any tips on reinstalling operating system on SSD so i retain the lenovo utilities that came on the factory image on the HDD,
I know you can download most of them from lenovo to install, but are there any that are only from the factory image?

should i make a clean install or make disc image? 

Is there anything that I missed that might not make these upgrades go as smoothly as possible?

any info is appreciated

 

[Fullmetal99012]

I have a machine with essentially the same specs, except I have 16GB of ram. I'd say get the RAM. 16GB makes my machine run like a dream. i'm in engineering, so I run AutoCAD and other similar applications. If you do use VM's, then you will want the extra memory as well. The machine can run linux, but with the loss of the Optimus, as it is not supported well. Do a clean install, but make the Recovery dvds first. also go to the root of the hard drive and back up the SWTOOLS and swshare folders. those contain all of the preloaded software. I always do a clean install when I get a new machine. Everything else looks good.