UML22 — UML 2.1.2:18.3.5 Package (from Profiles)

18.3.5 Package (from Profiles)

Description

A package can have one or more ProfileApplications to indicate which profiles have been applied.

Because a profile is a package, it is possible to apply a profile not only to packages, but also to profiles.”

A Profile is a subclass of InfrastructureLibrary::Constructs::Package, which cannot own ProfileApplications and so you can’t apply a profile to a profile.

Profiles does subclass Constructs::Package, but when Profiles is merged with Kernel::Classes::Package in UML compliance level L3, Package gets the ability to have applied profiles, as does its subclass, Profile. So whether a profile can be applied to a profile depends on what Profiles is merged with.

Note that Profiles cannot stand alone, with just an import of Constructs since it defines Class as a merge increment (in order to add extensions). Profiles::Class has no ownedAttributes, so without a merge, Stereotypes would not be able to have Properties.

However, applying a profile to a profile would extend the extensibility mechanisms of UML in non-standard ways that would not be supported by most tools. This would limit interoperability and break model interchange. So it should not be possible to apply a profile to another profile.
Disposition: Closed, no change.