http://www.sharepointblogs.com/wsspectacular/archive/2009/03/10/sql-2008-annoyances.aspx

Part of what this question attempts to point out is there is a long list of features available in the Enterprise version NOT available in the Standard version.

The CIO would probably understand if it was explained in terms of Cost Per Processor. As the Enterprise version costs roughly ten times that of the Standard, it is pretty obvious here that what you purchase from Microsoft with the Enterprise version are its features.

Microsoft provides the Developer with an Enterprise version, but it is not licensed in the same manner. So while technically, you could create a snapshot by writing a backup of the server each day to your laptop, and then publishing the snapshot, it sort of defeats the purpose of having a snapshot readily available.