I have spent along time tweaking and setting Ubuntu. Is there a simple way to back up my current setup so if the worst happens I can easily restore?

Thank you! ;-)

For an app you could use remastersys.

Another alternative is having your /home folder on a separate partition, so when you reinstall all your docs/configs remain.

Personally I find the best option is to have gedit open and list all the commands you type, apps you add/remove and any tweks you apply, then save the file.
Next time you need to do a clean install you have a nice simple list to follow with no crap left over. (obviously back the file up!)

Thank you, will look at your suggestions.

Just some more ideas... dEVIANT's suggestions are good enough.

Some time ago I found this link, about "etc snapshots with git". Basically any version control will do. I myself prefer GIT, Subversion, and Mercurial.

The basic idea is to use such a system not only for "source code", but for other files as well. I am currently working on setting up an environment for our company. Not only for "/etc" but other directories with settings as well. So maybe You can do this for "home" directories as well (not the complete one, just for the settings).

The only problem is where to store those repositories. A local copy may not be sufficient enough. Recovering a broken system over the internet may be also very troublesome.

For my private stuff I have a (linux) server at home and a (windows) server in the internet. I use my windows server with "VisualSVN", because this is very easy to install. I didn't invest my time to setup a git repository on windows.

On the other hand: this solution is not good for system restores... maybe have a look at Mondo Rescue and Partimage.

if you only want to back up your current configuration and don't need further backups why not keep it simple.
boot livecd and dd whole partition to some removable media for permanent storage. Not the prettiest solution but a foolproof one.

Thanks for your ideas xaoxipiz. I think using git as a backup method has a lot of merit. The beauty of it is that it allow for versioning of your settings and documents. I think I'll have a bit of a play and see how it goes.

I used to use aptoncd to backup the apt cache (downloaded .deb files) and save markings from synaptic.
Not an elegant put it back solution but easy enough to add it all back again after re-installing