"Cannot initialize the indexer process" in Magento 1.x

Problem: 

I have a problem re-indexing my Magento 1.x website. Sometimes I get the error "There was a problem with reindexing process", but sometimes it's "Cannot initialize the indexer process".

Solutions:

1. Increase memory limit

change .htaccess to increase memory limit to 2GB:

  php_value memory_limit 2048M

2. Check if permissions on /var folder allow writing. 

Try recommended secure permissions first:

find var/ -type f -exec chmod 600 {} \; 
find var/ -type d -exec chmod 700 {} \; 

3. Run indexer from ssh:

  php shell/indexer.php --reindex

or contact us and we'll run it for you - there are more details about any errors during this process