Question about control flow while filtering

In a Yii 1.1 view rendered with CGridView (via a search function within a model as the data provider), when you enter a string in a filter box, does the search function get re-executed or is the filter condition applied to the set of records currently in the data provider (previously selected by the search function)? Likewise, when you clear the string in the filter box, is control returned to the controller to re-execute the action and repaint the view?