Add option to save feature modules directly to file system instead of downloading

This would need to leverage the installer described in http://drupal.org/documentation/install/modules-themes/modules-7.

Personally, I use the command-line tools to build features. I got started doing that in part to avoid the annoyance of moving around and decompressing tarballs.

If I interpret your request correctly, you're asking for the ability when creating a new feature module, instead of downloading a tarball, to save it right to the host file system (e.g. in sites/all/modules/features) where it can be immediately installed. I think that's a great idea. It corresponds to #1416890: Add ability to update existing feature modules via UI.

Per #1416890: Add ability to update existing feature modules via UI, there is also a desire for features recreate to update features in place.

I think Features has zero scope for actually handling saving files to the modules directory. That functionality needs to be in a specialized, security-minded module or core enhancement. Once that functionality exists though, an optional dependency could empower this issue.

@Grayside, I don't understand what you mean by "Features has zero scope for [this]".

There is a separate module available for this: Features Tools. I think people just don't know about it, by and large. (Hence its install base of 156.) Part of the reason I hoped to see this functionality in Features core is that very reason, that it's such a common need but so few people seem to be aware of a solution. And because it's so little known, it's not as highly scrutinized or thoroughly developed.

Suppose, nevertheless, that it was made an optional dependency. How would that look from a user's perspective? Would you alert them to its absence like Views alerts you if you don't have Advanced Help installed?

I firmly believe that the functionality around putting executable code into the file system needs to be handled by specialized core functionality or a dedicated contrib module.

I firmly hope Features (core) absorbs most of Features Tools, it doesn't do much that *shouldn't* be part of Features. Except the direct saving to the file system.

@Grayside: By "specialized core functionality" do you mean a sub-module bundled with Features but enabled separately? Because I think that would be a wondeful solution—"Features Save in Place" or something.

@Travis I mean a module or part of core that focuses on saving modules to the file system, and provides API functionality so Features and other modules could leverage it for use.

Marked #1016962: auto download feature to custom module directory as duplicate of this.

I also think the direct save should be part of features module, but i dont think it is right to direct save to production sites.
If the server is setup right the www-data user cannot write to the sites/all/modules dir and that it is good.
The flew to create/update features is to make the change on the dev site and then push the change with git.
So i dont think there is a real security issue, or that somthing bad can happen if features will add the direct save option (if the www-data user can make change to the modules dir we in a danger situation allready)

but the must importent functionlity that features dont have is the unlink of features elements.
I think it should add be the modules, something like a new hook that handle the unlink procecss from the feature file that every module that export data to feature file should add.
I am soory if it is not right to point it on this issue.

Dup of #1294272: Features Generate to file system where there is a patch I'll be testing. Even though this is in Features Tools, I'd like to add it to core as well.

Updated issue summary.