User downloading a file

I am wondering what the possibilities are to allow a user to download a file, that is created by the TM1 server.

The use case we have is as follows, but the idea goes broader than only this use case we think.

We have a PAW Application. The user has a couple of selectors for company, version. Then a PAW button launches a process that creates a TXT text file. The file is actually, line by line, all the cells that the user should fill out for the chosen company and version. Think of OPEX HR cost planning. Accounts include FTE numbers, average wages, indexation %, bonus pay, etc. But the lines are very asymmetric: some accounts are entered at a monthly level while other accounts are populated at the yearly level.

In short, TI produces a very asymmetric, non-zero suppressed, data dump from a cube. We cannot do this in an MDX, the definition would be far too complicated.

The text file arrives on the TM1 server, or on a server that can be accessed by the TM1 service account.

The user should then have the permission to access that folder, copy/paste the file to a local folder and start filling out the values. After that a second TI process with drag and drop of the file will load it. That's easy enough and no need for changes there.

In summary: can we have a better user experience here to get a file to the Downloads folder of the user computer? I always thought that the server does not 'know' the user PC, but then how come a view in PAW can be exported to an Excel file on the user PC? It is this mechanism that we would like to have: an easy way to have a file on the PC of the user.

We considered alternatives like:

• an emailing procedure: banks block this option and honestly, it seems overkill and not efficient
• drill-through towards a text file (described by George Tonkin a while back): doing this exercise as a right-click drill from a cube cell is cumbersome and not user friendly
• having files in the sections of the Application is not satisfactory since files are dynamic: the contents (lines) change depending on the selectors
• users should not have access to the File Manager just to download a file. They are in the Application, not in a Workbench. They are not modelers in general.
• a 'Download' option with external scripting outside of PAW and using TM1 REST API: seems overkill to just get a couple of files across, if possible at all

What are the possibilities and if none exist, a new 'Download' option would be great for any kind of file that is created instead of 'always the same'. Thanks in advance.