I don't have exactly the same requirement, but I do keep backups of a number of systems (mostly Slackware) on a dedicated server.
What I do is use rsync and backup the lot. (This is very quick since rsync only copies the differences) Then if I need to recreate a system I just start with a blank disk, boot from a CD (Slackware or more often Knoppix) and copy the lot from the backup server.
Installing a standard, in your case, Red Hat system isn't necessary and is rather reminiscent of the way you have to do things with Windows.
So long as I restore everything where it was, and can then sort out LILO or GRUB so that it'll boot, I find that everything works. This has got me out of very serious trouble on several occasions!
Remember that disks are cheap these days, and enormous! I use an LVM setup on the backup server, so that it's possible to increase the size relatively simply.
Good luck!
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