diff --git a/common/src/progenitor_operation_retry.rs b/common/src/progenitor_operation_retry.rs
index 6007e117b3..4864cc90b7 100644
--- a/common/src/progenitor_operation_retry.rs
+++ b/common/src/progenitor_operation_retry.rs
@@ -11,17 +11,20 @@ use crate::backoff::retry_notify;
 use crate::backoff::retry_policy_internal_service;
 use crate::backoff::BackoffError;
 
-#[derive(Debug)]
+#[derive(Debug, thiserror::Error)]
 pub enum ProgenitorOperationRetryError<E> {
     /// Nexus determined that the operation will never return a known result
     /// because the remote server is gone.
+    #[error("remote server is gone")]
     Gone,
 
     /// Attempting to check if the retry loop should be stopped failed
-    GoneCheckError(Error),
+    #[error("failed to determine whether remote server is gone")]
+    GoneCheckError(#[source] Error),
 
     /// The retry loop progenitor operation saw a permanent client error
-    ProgenitorError(progenitor_client::Error<E>),
+    #[error("permanent error")]
+    ProgenitorError(#[source] progenitor_client::Error<E>),
 }
 
 impl<E> ProgenitorOperationRetryError<E> {
diff --git a/nexus/src/app/sagas/common_storage.rs b/nexus/src/app/sagas/common_storage.rs
index 28e0bc4771..dc25589b37 100644
--- a/nexus/src/app/sagas/common_storage.rs
+++ b/nexus/src/app/sagas/common_storage.rs
@@ -8,12 +8,13 @@ use super::*;
 
 use crate::Nexus;
 use crucible_pantry_client::types::VolumeConstructionRequest;
+use internal_dns_types::names::ServiceName;
 use nexus_db_queries::authz;
 use nexus_db_queries::context::OpContext;
 use nexus_db_queries::db;
 use nexus_db_queries::db::lookup::LookupPath;
 use omicron_common::api::external::Error;
-use omicron_common::retry_until_known_result;
+use omicron_common::progenitor_operation_retry::ProgenitorOperationRetry;
 use slog::Logger;
 use slog_error_chain::InlineErrorChain;
 use std::net::SocketAddrV6;
@@ -26,7 +27,7 @@ pub(crate) use pantry_pool::PooledPantryClient;
 // Common Pantry operations
 
 pub(crate) async fn get_pantry_address(
-    nexus: &Arc<Nexus>,
+    nexus: &Nexus,
 ) -> Result<SocketAddrV6, ActionError> {
     let client = nexus.pantry_connection_pool().claim().await.map_err(|e| {
         ActionError::action_failed(format!(
@@ -37,10 +38,42 @@ pub(crate) async fn get_pantry_address(
     Ok(client.address())
 }
 
+// Helper function for attach/detach below: we retry as long as the pantry isn't
+// gone, and we detect "gone" by seeing whether the pantry address we've chosen
+// is still present when we resolve all the crucible pantry records in DNS.
+//
+// This function never returns an error because it's expected to be used with
+// `ProgenitorOperationRetry`, which treats an error in the "gone check" as a
+// fatal error. We don't want to amplify failures: if something is wrong with
+// DNS, we can't go back and choose another pantry anyway, so we'll just keep
+// retrying until DNS comes back. All that to say: a failure to resolve DNS is
+// treated as "the pantry is not gone".
+async fn is_pantry_gone(
+    nexus: &Nexus,
+    pantry_address: SocketAddrV6,
+    log: &Logger,
+) -> bool {
+    let all_pantry_dns_entries = match nexus
+        .resolver()
+        .lookup_all_socket_v6(ServiceName::CruciblePantry)
+        .await
+    {
+        Ok(entries) => entries,
+        Err(err) => {
+            warn!(
+                log, "Failed to resolve Crucible pantry in DNS";
+                InlineErrorChain::new(&err),
+            );
+            return false;
+        }
+    };
+    !all_pantry_dns_entries.contains(&pantry_address)
+}
+
 pub(crate) async fn call_pantry_attach_for_disk(
     log: &slog::Logger,
     opctx: &OpContext,
-    nexus: &Arc<Nexus>,
+    nexus: &Nexus,
     disk_id: Uuid,
     pantry_address: SocketAddrV6,
 ) -> Result<(), ActionError> {
@@ -82,18 +115,26 @@ pub(crate) async fn call_pantry_attach_for_disk(
         volume_construction_request,
     };
 
-    retry_until_known_result(log, || async {
-        client.attach(&disk_id.to_string(), &attach_request).await
-    })
-    .await
-    .map_err(|e| {
-        ActionError::action_failed(format!("pantry attach failed with {:?}", e))
-    })?;
+    let attach_operation =
+        || async { client.attach(&disk_id.to_string(), &attach_request).await };
+    let gone_check =
+        || async { Ok(is_pantry_gone(nexus, pantry_address, log).await) };
+
+    ProgenitorOperationRetry::new(attach_operation, gone_check)
+        .run(log)
+        .await
+        .map_err(|e| {
+            ActionError::action_failed(format!(
+                "pantry attach failed: {}",
+                InlineErrorChain::new(&e)
+            ))
+        })?;
 
     Ok(())
 }
 
 pub(crate) async fn call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
+    nexus: &Nexus,
     log: &slog::Logger,
     disk_id: Uuid,
     pantry_address: SocketAddrV6,
@@ -104,13 +145,20 @@ pub(crate) async fn call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
 
     let client = crucible_pantry_client::Client::new(&endpoint);
 
-    retry_until_known_result(log, || async {
-        client.detach(&disk_id.to_string()).await
-    })
-    .await
-    .map_err(|e| {
-        ActionError::action_failed(format!("pantry detach failed with {:?}", e))
-    })?;
+    let detach_operation =
+        || async { client.detach(&disk_id.to_string()).await };
+    let gone_check =
+        || async { Ok(is_pantry_gone(nexus, pantry_address, log).await) };
+
+    ProgenitorOperationRetry::new(detach_operation, gone_check)
+        .run(log)
+        .await
+        .map_err(|e| {
+            ActionError::action_failed(format!(
+                "pantry detach failed: {}",
+                InlineErrorChain::new(&e)
+            ))
+        })?;
 
     Ok(())
 }
diff --git a/nexus/src/app/sagas/disk_create.rs b/nexus/src/app/sagas/disk_create.rs
index d2e3053668..844669a7e0 100644
--- a/nexus/src/app/sagas/disk_create.rs
+++ b/nexus/src/app/sagas/disk_create.rs
@@ -769,7 +769,13 @@ async fn sdc_call_pantry_attach_for_disk_undo(
 
     let pantry_address = sagactx.lookup::<SocketAddrV6>("pantry_address")?;
 
-    call_pantry_detach_for_disk(&log, disk_id, pantry_address).await?;
+    call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
+        sagactx.user_data().nexus(),
+        &log,
+        disk_id,
+        pantry_address,
+    )
+    .await?;
 
     Ok(())
 }
diff --git a/nexus/src/app/sagas/finalize_disk.rs b/nexus/src/app/sagas/finalize_disk.rs
index 89893fb703..997914df45 100644
--- a/nexus/src/app/sagas/finalize_disk.rs
+++ b/nexus/src/app/sagas/finalize_disk.rs
@@ -286,7 +286,13 @@ async fn sfd_call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
     let params = sagactx.saga_params::<Params>()?;
     let pantry_address = sagactx.lookup::<SocketAddrV6>("pantry_address")?;
 
-    call_pantry_detach_for_disk(&log, params.disk_id, pantry_address).await
+    call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
+        sagactx.user_data().nexus(),
+        &log,
+        params.disk_id,
+        pantry_address,
+    )
+    .await
 }
 
 async fn sfd_clear_pantry_address(
diff --git a/nexus/src/app/sagas/region_replacement_drive.rs b/nexus/src/app/sagas/region_replacement_drive.rs
index 4e6335435f..7c90c4d65d 100644
--- a/nexus/src/app/sagas/region_replacement_drive.rs
+++ b/nexus/src/app/sagas/region_replacement_drive.rs
@@ -1284,11 +1284,12 @@ async fn execute_pantry_drive_action(
     volume_id: Uuid,
     job_id: Uuid,
 ) -> Result<(), ActionError> {
-    // Importantly, _do not use `call_pantry_attach_for_disk`_! That uses
-    // `retry_until_known_result`, which we _do not want here_. The Pantry
-    // attach can fail if there's a racing Volume checkout to be sent to
-    // Propolis. Additionally, that call uses `attach` instead of
-    // `attach_activate_background`, which means it will hang on the activation.
+    // Importantly, _do not use `call_pantry_attach_for_disk`_! That retries
+    // as long as `pantry_address` is still resolvable in DNS, which we _do not
+    // want here_. The Pantry attach can fail if there's a racing Volume
+    // checkout to be sent to Propolis. Additionally, that call uses `attach`
+    // instead of `attach_activate_background`, which means it will hang on the
+    // activation.
 
     let endpoint = format!("http://{}", pantry_address);
     let client = crucible_pantry_client::Client::new(&endpoint);
diff --git a/nexus/src/app/sagas/snapshot_create.rs b/nexus/src/app/sagas/snapshot_create.rs
index b47d036d9c..6a5862f883 100644
--- a/nexus/src/app/sagas/snapshot_create.rs
+++ b/nexus/src/app/sagas/snapshot_create.rs
@@ -1145,8 +1145,13 @@ async fn ssc_call_pantry_attach_for_disk_undo(
             pantry_address
         );
 
-        call_pantry_detach_for_disk(&log, params.disk_id, pantry_address)
-            .await?;
+        call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
+            sagactx.user_data().nexus(),
+            &log,
+            params.disk_id,
+            pantry_address,
+        )
+        .await?;
     } else {
         info!(
             log,
@@ -1248,8 +1253,13 @@ async fn ssc_call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
             params.disk_id,
             pantry_address
         );
-        call_pantry_detach_for_disk(&log, params.disk_id, pantry_address)
-            .await?;
+        call_pantry_detach_for_disk(
+            sagactx.user_data().nexus(),
+            &log,
+            params.disk_id,
+            pantry_address,
+        )
+        .await?;
     }
 
     Ok(())