External hard drive not recognized after intel security bios update

[Psychee]

I have two Maxtor One-Touch 4 Plus external hard drives that I use to back up my system.  They have their own power system and they connect via USB.  Both operated well last time I used them with this notebook.  Now neither one gets recognized by this system;  they connect OK, but Windows is now calling them an "unknown device" with "no drivers available". They do not show up in File Explorer, they do not show up in "Disk Management".  Changing the USB port they are connected to makes no difference.

Both still work well with a stand-by unit running Win-XP. 

I recently took HP's advice and installed the Intel security bios update.   I did not notice any problems after that except this one.  I am thinking that this update messed up my computer's recognition of my external drives. A security concern, maybe?

But I don't know what to do about it.  I tried to go back to an earlier restore point, but it was not successful.  Windows said that it failed to open a needed file. 

1.  Have others reported difficulties recognizing external hard drives after the Intel bios update?

2.  Is there a fix or work around for this?  Back up drives are no good if you can't access them! 

Things I have already tried:

1.  Checked all USB ports -- all working.

2.  Uninstalled and re-installed -- twice.

3.  "Update Driver" -- attempted over and over -- "no driver available"

  [We used to be able to pick out a manufacturer and a device for "unknown devices" -- I don't see that option anymore in Windows so I don't if it even looks before it tell me none are available. ]

4.  Looked at the manufacturer's website for updated drivers -- they still offer the drivers and the installation software, and I used it, but the drives were still not recognized.

Anyone got a solution to this mess?

Thanks in advance,

Psychee