A method begins by a dispersed storage (DS) processing module detecting a storage error of an encoded data slice associated with a storage server within a maintenance free storage container. The method continues with the DS processing module determining failure mode information for the storage server and other storage servers and determining a rebuilding protocol for the encoded data. When the determined rebuilding protocol is a zero information gain (ZIG) protocol, the method continues with the DS processing module identifying a decode threshold number of storage servers from the other storage servers of the maintenance free storage container and from storage servers of another maintenance free storage container, retrieving zero information gain (ZIG) partial encoded data slices from the decode threshold number of storage servers, and decoding the ZIG partial encoded data slices utilizing a ZIG dispersed storage error coding function to reproduce the encoded data slice.