Windows7Install

If using both an SDD and an HDD, install with only the HDD connected.
Install Windows 7
Open a CMD window as administrator, run powercfg -h off to disable hibernation.
Turn off indexing for C: drive
Reboot
Install hardware drivers
Install most recent SATA drivers from here (sort by date)
Turn off "highlight newly installed programs."
Windows Update (reboot, repeat until no more updates)
Install core software
- Firefox
- Thunderbird
- Flash
- Shockwave
- Java Runtime
- Adobe Reader
- WinDirStat
- VLC
Add HDD
Install MSFT Office
Upgrade to Microsoft Update
Install Office updates
Run Windows Experience Index Assessment (Windows Key + Pause/Break)
Check/Disable scheduled disk defrag on SSDs (search for disk degfrag in programs)
[SSD ONLY] Disable prefetch and superfetch
- In Services.msc, disable SuperFetch
- In RegEdit: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\PrefetchParameters
  - Set "EnablePrefetcher" to "0"
  - Set "EnableSuperfetch" to "0"
Activate Windows
Clear any Internet history (IE & Firefox)
Clear restore points
Create baseline restore point
Image

References