Does the Filter property require that all records be returned from an SQL-Server table?

I am trying to optimize a form that has an Access 2007 front end an linked ODBC tables in an SQL Server back-end.  I have a form that only needs a small subset of a large table and the "where" clause is generated dynamically when the form opens.  Setting the FILTER property for the form in the ON LOAD event works, but I'm afraid it's pulling the entire table and then filtering the results.  Is this true or does it pass the filter paramter into the WHERE part of the SQL.  I would like the Server to do the WHERE work.   What's the best way to do this?Start Free Trial