We present the analysis of the spin signals obtained in NiFe based metallic lateral spin valves. We exploit the spin-dependent diffusive equations in both the conventional one-dimensional (1D) analytic modeling and in 3D finite element method simulations. These approaches are used for extracting the spin diffusion length and the effective spin polarization in Py/Al, Py/Cu, and Py/Au based lateral nanostructures at both 300 K and 77 K. Both the analytic modeling and 3D finite element method simulations give consistent results. The combination of these models provides a powerful tool for reliable spin transport characterization in all metallic spin valves and gives an insight into the spin/charge current and spin accumulations 3D distributions in these devices. We provide the necessary ingredients to develop the 3D finite element modeling of diffusive spin transport.