various embodiments of this invention are directed towards the communication infrastructure of an automated inventory system , on which the necessary communication between a dispensing unit and an administrative unit of the system occurs . to facilitate the integration of the automated inventory system into the client &# 39 ; s computer network , the infrastructure is preferably implemented using hypertext transfer protocol or its secured counterpart . in certain embodiments the administrative unit is located external to the client &# 39 ; s network , beyond the client &# 39 ; s firewall . in these embodiments it is preferable to have the dispensing unit initiate communication with the administrative units because the firewall is typically setup to reject external connection requests .