SQL Server data migrations go through client machine or not? I want to move a lot of data from a SQL Server database on one machine to another machine. Both machines are remote. If I run the Copy Database wizard, will it pull all the data across the Internet to my client machine and then push it back out to the destination? Or will the source and destination machines communicate directly?

It's a very big database, so this matters quite a bit.

One complexity is that my login only shows a view of a subset of the data, so backup and restore would not work. I have to copy from a view to a table.

I can set things up so the two remote machines can see each other. I don't think I would be able to run the wizard on one of them, though, because I all I have is a login to the db and no other access to the OS.
If you run the copy database wizard then yes all the data will go through which ever machine you run the copy database wizard on.

If you are moving a large database, especially one with a complex schema then backup and restore is a much better option.