A document file presents information accurate at a single point in time. Using Information Console, you view a document file immediately. No update of the data appearing in the document occurs. In Categories view, document files appear listed in the Documents You Can View category.

An Actuate document file presents formatted and structured content from a data source, such as a database, spreadsheet, or text file. An Actuate document file contains data that a user can view and manipulate, using the browser-based Interactive Viewer tool. You can save an Actuate document file in third-party document formats such as Adobe PDF and IBM Advanced Function Printing (AFP) and Microsoft Office formats such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Download third-party files for viewing and editing outside of the Actuate server system. An Encyclopedia volume administrator can store custom file types in a volume. To open a custom file type, use the default viewing software. If multiple or no viewers are available locally for a selected file, choose or download a tool appropriate to open the file.