Handling degraded conditions using a redirect module

A method for execution by one or more processing modules of one or more computing devices of a dispersed storage network (DSN), the method comprises:

• receiving a request for data storage access sent to a first dispersed storage (DS) processing unit while it is in a potentially degraded state, wherein the first dispersed storage (DS) processing unit is remotely located from storage units of the DSN and operatively connected to the storage units through a communications network;
• pre-processing, by a higher operational layer of the first DS processing unit, the request for data storage access sent to the first DS processing unit by determining, by a first redirect module, whether the first DS processing unit is in a non-degraded state or degraded state;
• and
• if the first DS processing unit is in the non-degraded state, transferring, by the first redirect module, the request for data storage access to the first DS processing unit to be processed;
• and
• if the first DS processing unit is in the degraded state, identifying a second DS processing unit that is in a non-degraded state, and redirecting, by the first redirect module, the request to the second DS processing unit;
• and
• processing, by the second DS processing unit, the request for data storage access, wherein the processing includes one of:
• disperse error encoding segments of data from the request for data storage access, into one or more sets of encoded data slices and storing to a corresponding set of the storage units, or retrieving sets of encoded data slices of segments of the data, in the request for data storage access, from a corresponding set of storage units and thereafter disperse error decoding.