We provide a systematic account of the effect of various parameters involved in these calculations and recommend optimal values for each. The size of the ensembles, the duration of the simulations and the number of intermediate states are among the numerous parameters that need to be chosen appropriately. In addition, specific to the NEQ approach, there are numerous additional parameters such as the number and length of the fast alchemical transitions that need to be selected. Furthermore, the overlap in phase space and the dissipation work values arising during the fast alchemical transitions must also be carefully controlled . None of these aspects has been treated systematically hitherto.