Shared Memory :: What is Optimal?

[TopHatProductions115]

Over the past couple of days, I have made multiple purchases to improve my gaming performance (the most notable of which is the GTX 1060 6GB). However, I have a bit of an itch that I haven't figured out how to scratch. On most systems, GPU and System memory are separate - except for cases in which a laptop comes with a GPU that's forced to use shared System memory (glaring at GeForce Go! dGPU). In a few days, I will have both a GTX 550 Ti and the 1060 6GB at my disposal for testing/experimentation. My questions are:

• Should I ever give the GPU any Shared memory (especially once I upgrade to the GTX 1060 6GB)?
• What is the optimal Shared memory amount for high-performance compute/gaming tasks?
• How much will use of Shared memory help/harm my system's performance (knowing that there is a penalty for using Shared memory)?

My specs are listed in my profile. Yes, the RAM is in 3-Channel configuration (might not affect much). 

[Rainbow Dash]

Well you should give it the least amount, and here is a video explaining the whole thing.

 

[TopHatProductions115]

@RandomGuy13 @Rainbow Dash So, TL;DR, the performance hit of using System memory as VRAM (Shared) on modern computers is still high enough that it's better to simply work with the VRAM that I have.

 

And there's no indication of this situation changing any time soon - good thing GPUs keep cramming more VRAM on with each generation (I assume).