---
id: external-drives.what-do-looks-good-warnings-and-not-suitable-mean
url: https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/what-do-looks-good-warnings-and-not-suitable-mean
category: "External drives"
subcategory: "Setting up your drive"
question: "What do \"looks good\", \"usable with warnings\" and \"not suitable\" mean in Choose Drive?"
alt_questions:
  - "Choose Drive compatibility verdict meaning"
  - "Why is my drive marked not suitable?"
  - "What does usable with warnings mean?"
  - "drive verdict colours storage studio"
  - "Why is the Use This Drive button greyed out?"
  - "What makes a drive compatible with Storage Studio?"
short_answer: "Looks good means a Mac-formatted external drive. Usable with warnings means it works but isn't ideal (for example exFAT) and you confirm with Use Anyway. Not suitable — internal, network or FAT32 drives — can't be selected."
tags: ["compatibility", "verdict", "choose drive"]
related: ["https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/how-do-i-set-up-my-external-drive", "https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/how-does-the-drive-speed-test-work", "https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/can-i-change-my-drive-with-choose-drive-later"]
applies_to: "all"
last_reviewed: 2026-10-01
---

# What do "looks good", "usable with warnings" and "not suitable" mean in Choose Drive?

They're the compatibility verdict for the selected drive, with the specific reasons listed underneath.

- **Looks good** (green) — a Mac-formatted (APFS or Mac OS Extended) external drive.
- **Usable with warnings** (orange) — it will work, but something isn't ideal, such as exFAT or another non-Mac format. You can still use it; the confirmation calls the warnings out and asks you to **Use Anyway**.
- **Not suitable** (red) — internal drives, network drives and older Windows formats such as FAT32. **Use This Drive** stays disabled.

The speed test adds its own verdict: a drive that's too slow is blocked, a slow one gets a warning.